Sakic, Sundin highlight 2012 Hall of Fame class

Toronto, ON – Joe Sakic and Mats Sundin are two of the four new inductees into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Joining the first-time candidates in the 2012 class are Pavel Bure and Adam Oates.

The announcement was made Tuesday and the induction ceremony will take place November 12 in Toronto.

Sakic was one of the few players who spent his entire illustrious career with one franchise. The 13-time All-Star was a first-round draft pick of the Quebec Nordiques back in 1987, eight years before they moved to Colorado and became the Avalanche.

After 20 seasons, Sakic retired as the franchise's all-time leader with 625 goals and 1,016 assists and also won the Hart Trophy in 2001.

Sakic was a key figure in the Avalanche's two Stanley Cup titles in 1996 and 2001, winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP in the '96 championship run. He also earned tournament MVP honors as Canada skated off with the gold medal at the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics.

Sundin, who played with Sakic his first four years in the NHL, spent 13 seasons with the Maple Leafs and still holds Toronto franchise records for most points, goals, power-play goals, shorthanded goals, game-winning goals and overtime goals.

A 2006 Olympic gold medal-winner with Sweden, Sundin totaled 1,349 points in 1,346 NHL games. He scored 564 goals and had 785 assists.

Bure, nicknamed the "Russian Rocket," averaged 36.7 goals per season in 12 NHL campaigns and twice reached the 60-goal plateau. He won the Calder Trophy in 1992 with the Canucks and the Rocket Richard Trophy in 2000 and 2001 with the Panthers. He finished his NHL career with 437 goals and 779 points.

Oates, who just several hours prior to his Hall-of-Fame bid was named the head coach of the Washington Capitals, ranks sixth all-time in NHL history with 1,079 assists and 16th with 1,420 points. He played 1,337 career games with Detroit, St. Louis, Boston, Washington, Philadelphia, Anaheim and Edmonton.