ECHL announces 2022 Hall of Fame Class

Harris, Marietti, Martin and Nowak to be inducted in January

The ECHL announced on Thursday that the 2022 inductees for the ECHL Hall of Fame are Ray Harris, Brett Marietti, Joel Martin and Tim Nowak. The four will be formally inducted as the 14th class of the ECHL Hall of Fame at a luncheon that will be held in conjunction with the 2022 Warrior Hockey/ECHL All Star Classic. The 2022 ECHL Hall of Fame ceremony, presented by BFL CANADA and Sutton Special Risk, will take place at 12 p.m. on Monday, January 17, 2022 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Jacksonville Riverfront in Jacksonville, Florida, the Official Host Hotel of the 2022 ECHL All-Star Classic. “The ECHL is excited to resume our Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Jacksonville this January, and return to honoring the people who have helped propel this League to where we are today in our 34th Season,” said ECHL Commissioner, Ryan Crelin. “Thanks for our partners at BFL Canada and Sutton Special Risk, this year’s ceremony will honor a group that has dedicated a lot of time and professionalism in our League, and we are looking forward to gathering everyone for this special occasion.” “BFL CANADA is honored and excited to once again be reunited in Jacksonville with our ECHL family and friends,” said BFL CANADA Vice President, National Practice Leader - Film and Entertainment Nellie Lindner. “We look forward to being part of the 2022 Hall of Fame induction.” Limited tickets for this special event are available by contacting the Jacksonville Icemen office or visiting the links below. Tickets include a plated lunch in conjunction with the ECHL Hall of Fame ceremony and are on sale for $50 per person, or a 10-person table and organization recognition may be purchased for $500: Individual Ticket SalesTable Ticket Sales (10 Tickets) Ray Harris has served as Owner and President of the Cincinnati Cyclones for nearly 20 years, in addition to his role as Chief Financial Officer for Nederlander Company, where he is responsible for all aspects of the company’s financial operations. Upon Nederlander’s purchase of the Cyclones in 2003, Harris helped build the team into a two-time Kelly Cup champion and a four-time division champion, while setting several ECHL league-attendance records in the process. The Cyclones have welcomed the two largest crowds in ECHL postseason history under Harris’ leadership, with 13,348 fans for their Kelly Cup clinching victory in 2010 and 12,722 fans for their championship victory in 2008. Cincinnati also had the third-largest crowd in ECHL regular-season history when they had 16,529 fans on Feb. 27, 2016. Harris also served as Chairman of the ECHL Board of Governors for five seasons from 2015-16 through 2019- 20, and currently serves as chair of the League’s audit committee. Brett Marietti played all but 38 games of his 10-year professional career in the ECHL, skating in 550 games with the South Carolina Stingrays from 1994-2003, to rank 23rd in League history in games played. He captured Kelly Cup titles with the Stingrays in 1997 and 2001, notching 35 points (17g-18a) in 29 games over the course of those two championship runs. Marietti scored at least 20 goals seven times over his nine seasons, and ranks 23rd in ECHL history with 194 career goals, tied for 37th with 287 assists and 36th with 481 points. His 30 career playoff goals are tied for 13th in ECHL postseason history while his 62 points are tied for 26th. Joel Martin played parts of 10 seasons in the ECHL with Columbus (Ga.), Trenton, Augusta, Elmira and Kalamazoo, and ranks second among goaltenders in League history with 22,962 minutes played, third with 394 appearances and fourth with 199 wins. He holds the top two spots on the ECHL single-season minutes played list (3,777 in 2015-16 and 3,793 in 2012-13) and has the second and third spots on the single-season saves (2,084 in 2015-16 and 2,051 in 2012-13) and games played (64 in 2015-16 and 63 in 2012-13) lists. Martin is tied for third in ECHL history with five seasons of 20 or more wins and he is the only goaltender in League history to have at least three seasons of 30 or more victories while he is one of only three netminders to notch back-to-back 30-plus win seasons. He is currently in his third season as Kalamazoo’s assistant coach. Tim Nowak becomes just the third on-ice official to earn enshrinement into the ECHL Hall of Fame, joining Joe Ernst (2011) and Brad Phillips (2017). He began his career as a linesman in the ECHL in 1989 and worked three seasons in the league, twice earning an assignment working the Riley Cup Finals. He became the first ECHL on-ice official to reach the National Hockey League when he made his debut on Oct. 8, 1993, and he went on to work over 1,700 NHL games in 26 seasons before retiring in 2019. Nowak was selected to work the 2003 All-Star Game, the 2003 Stanley Cup Final, the 2004 World Cup of Hockey and the first-ever Winter Classic in 2008. He also was selected to officiate in two Winter Olympics, working games in 2002 in Salt Lake City and 2010 in Vancouver. He has served as an ECHL Officiating Development Coach since his retirement from the NHL. The inaugural ECHL Hall of Fame class inducted in 2008 was Henry Brabham, Patrick J. Kelly, Chris Valicevic and Nick Vitucci; the class of 2009 was John Brophy, Blake Cullen, Tom Nemeth and Rod Taylor; the 2010 ECHL Hall of Fame class was Cam Brown, E.A. “Bud” Gingher, Olaf Kolzig and Darryl Noren; the 2011 class was Richard Adams, Phil Berger, Luke Curtin and Joe Ernst; the Class of 2012 was Bill Coffey, Sheldon Gorski, John Marks, Dave Seitz and Bob Woods; the 2013 class was David Craievich, Marc Magliarditi, Steve Poapst and Darren Schwartz; the class of 2014 was James Edwards, Wes Goldie, Al MacIsaac and John Spoltore; the class of 2015 was Darren Colbourne, Louis Dumont, Scott Sabatino and Carl Scheer; the class of 2016 was Daniel Berthiaume, Craig Brush and Allan Sirois; the class of 2017 was T. Paul Hendrick, Rick Kowalsky and Brad Phillips; the 2018 class was Steve Chapman, Sam Ftorek and Jason Saal; the 2019 class was Jim Bermingham, Alex Hicks, Rick Judson and Brian McKenna and the 2020 class was Jared Bednar, Dany Bousquet, Derek Clancey and Glen Metropolit . Inductees are enshrined in the ECHL Hall of Fame, which is open around the clock online at ECHLHallOfFame.com, as well as being recognized at the league office in Shrewsbury, N.J. and in the ECHL section at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, Ontario. The third-longest tenured professional hockey league, behind only the National Hockey League and the American Hockey League, the Premier ‘AA’ Hockey League has grown from five teams in four states in 1988-89 into a coast-to-coast league with 27 teams in 20 states and two Canadian provinces for its 34th season in 2021-22. Hall of Fame members are selected in four categories: Player, Developmental Player, Builder, and Referee/Linesman. No more than five candidates may be elected to the ECHL Hall of Fame each year with no more than three Players, one Developmental Player, two Builders and one Referee/Linesman. The Developmental Player, Builder and the Referee/Linesman categories are dependent upon the number of candidates in the Player category. The nomination and/or selection of candidates will be determined by the Hall of Fame Selection Committee and its Chairman Patrick J. Kelly. Only members of the Selection Committee, the Board of Governors, teams or persons affiliated with the ECHL may submit official nominations which must be made in writing to the league office. Fans are encouraged to contact their team to propose names for nomination. About the ECHL Began in 1988-89 with five teams in four states, the ECHL has grown into a coast-to-coast league with 27 teams in 20 states and two Canadian provinces for its 34th season in 2021-22. There have been 705 players who have gone on to play in the National Hockey League after starting their careers in the ECHL, including seven who have made their NHL debuts in the 2021-22 season. The ECHL has affiliations with 27 of the 32 NHL teams in 2021-22, marking the 25th consecutive season that the league has affiliations with at least 20 teams in the NHL. Further information on the ECHL is available on its website at ECHL.com as well as on Twitter and Facebook. About BFL CANADA BFL CANADA was founded by Barry F. Lorenzetti in 1987 and has been headquartered in Montreal since its beginning. The President, CEO and Founder was quickly joined by others who shared his vision. From then on, the company became what it is today thanks to the constant addition of professionals who are recognized as leaders in their respective industries. From modest beginnings to great success, BFL CANADA is proud of its achievements and the mark it has left on the insurance industry. Today, BFL CANADA caters to the needs of clients, both large and small, from all industry segments. About Sutton Special Risk As a Managing General Underwriter since 1978, Sutton Special Risk has always focused on delivering flexible and affordable insurance solutions for our clients. Our attention to service means we respond quickly and effectively.To provide our clients with exceptional security and global reach, Sutton underwrites business on behalf of several ‘A’ rated carriers. Our carrier partners share our appetite for risk and our willingness to customize plans to suit our clients’ needs. Our partnerships allow us to offer industry-leading high sums insured and broad coverage, including special hazards.