The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) is proud to announce that seven exceptional figures from the world of hockey will be inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2026. This extraordinary class features six Players and one Builder, representing a remarkable span of international achievement across eras, nations, and competitions. The induction ceremony will take place on the final day of the 2026 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship in Zurich, Switzerland.

This year’s class includes icons from women’s and men’s hockey, historic leaders, generational talents, and two new members of the prestigious Triple Gold Club, bringing the total number of Hall of Fame honorees to 258 since 1997.

Players include Swiss goalie Florence Schelling, Austrian forward Thomas Vanek, Canadian captain Cassie Campbell-Pascall, recently-retired Swiss forward Andres Ambuhl, and two members of the IIHF’s Triple Gold Club—Canadian Patrice Bergeron and Swede Niklas Kronwall. The Builder is Ralph Krueger, who was so critical to the Swiss national team’s success in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
 

THE 2026 IIHF HALL OF FAME CLASS

Florence Schelling (SUI – Player)

Schelling started her international career in 2004 at the age of 15, and by the time she retired 15 years later she had played in more games at the World Women’s Championship (44), more minutes (2,578:35), and won more games (21) than any other netminder in history.

Among her many achievements, however, there is one that is perhaps her greatest. From April 5, 2013, to February 17, 2018, a span of nearly five years, no one played goal for Switzerland in a senior IIHF event except Florence Schelling. Not one minute. 

That computes to 28 straight complete games, from the 2013 Women’s Worlds, through the 2014 Olympics, the 2015, 2016, and 2017 Women’s Worlds, and the 2018 Olympics. In all, she played in 63 of a possible 70 games for her country.

Without question the highlight of Schelling’s career matched the national women’s team highlight—winning a bronze medal at the 2014 Olympics.
 

Thomas Vanek (AUT – Player)

There is simply no doubting that Vanek is the greatest player in the long history of hockey in Austria. He is only the fourth Austrian inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame and second player after Sepp Puschnig. Vanek moved to Canada at age 14 to develop his game, and he later played for the University of Minnesota in NCAA hockey, where he led the Golden Gophers to a national championship in 2003 and was named MVP of the Frozen Four playoffs. 

Vanek joined the Buffalo Sabres in the fall of 2005 and started what would be the greatest NHL career by an Austrian. He had 25 goals as a rookie, his first of ten straight seasons with 20 or more. Twice he had 40 goals and twice 30, playing 1,029 games over 14 seasons, nine of which were in Buffalo. In what turned out to be his final year with the Sabres, 2013-14, he was named captain for home games, thus becoming the first Austrian to wear the “C” for an NHL team. 

Vanek represented his country at every opportunity. At the top level, he played at the 2014 Olympics, where he also acted as team captain, and three World Championships between 2004 and 2013. He was also named to Team Europe for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, helping that hybrid team make it to the finals against Canada. 

Cassie Campbell-Pascall (CAN – Player)

It’s difficult to quantify the contributions of Cassie Campbell-Pascall to hockey. Her legend is so much a part of the game that she is a rare “one-name” player in Canada. Everyone knows who Sid and Mario are. Gordie, Wayne, and Bobby need no last name for reference. And so it is with Cassie. There is only one. From the time she began her international career in 1994 at the age of 20, right up to today, Campbell-Pascall has been an integral part of hockey, first as a player in women’s hockey, and later in the NHL and PWHL.

She captained Canada for two Olympics and two Women’s Worlds. She won ten medals in IIHF women’s competitions, including eight gold, and she did so in a manner that has never been done before or since. She spent half her career as a defender and half as a forward, proving equally adept in both positions at both ends of the ice. After retiring, she was a pioneer and ground-breaker, an inspiration and relentless promoter of the women’s game. Campbell-Pascall was the first woman to do colour commentary on Hockey Night in Canada. And, after more than a dozen years in front of the camera, she became a special advisor for the PWHL.

Andres Ambühl (SUI – Player)

Ambuhl just retired last year, but the Historical Committee took the unusual step to waive the two-year waiting period for a player so richly deserving of honour. Ambuhl has played more World Championship games than any player in the nearly 100-year history of play (151), and his 20 WM tournaments is also a record that might well last in perpetuity. A steady, two-way forward, he was part of Switzerland’s only medal at the U18 Worlds, a silver in 2001, and he later played on three of the team’s four silver-medal-winning teams at the World Championship since 2013. 

Patrice Bergeron (CAN – Player)

Bergeron was the Triple Gold Club member #25, but even before he became a TGC member he made IIHF history. He is the only player to win World Championship gold BEFORE winning World Junior Championship gold, a feat he accomplished in 2004 (at the end of his NHL rookie season) and 2005 (during the NHL lockout). He also won Olympic gold twice, in 2010 and 2014, as well as the championship at the 2016 World Cup, and he also played at the 2006 WM. Most of his appearances for Team Canada came alongside Sidney Crosby. Rarely have two Canadians had such perfect chemistry on ice, and as a pair they were instrumental in the aforementioned wins of 2005, 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2016. A two-way player who was dangerous in the offensive zone as both passer and scorer, Bergeron also won the Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins in 2011. He played his entire 19-year, 1,294-game career with the Bruins, retiring in 2023 as one of the game’s greatest.

Niklas Kronwall (SWE – Player)

Tre Kronor defender Kronwall is another member of the Triple Gold Club to be honoured this year. In his case, he is #20, having won Olympic gold in 2006, World Championship gold also in 2006, and the Stanley Cup, with Detroit, in 2008. Not the biggest blueliner, he nevertheless packed a punch when he hit an opponent, which led to the phrase “being Kronwalled.” 

He played his entire 15-year career in the NHL with the Red Wings, retiring in 2019. Kronwall was named MVP of the 2006 WM, leading Sweden in scoring with ten points in eight games. He also played at the 1999 Men’s U18 and two World Junior Championships, in 2000 and 2001. Kronwall won silver medals at the Olympics (2014) and World Championship (2003). 

Ralph Krueger (CAN/SUI/GER – Builder)

Between 1998 and 2010, coach Krueger had an immense impact on the Swiss national team. Between 1963 and 1997, the Swiss played in the World Championship A Pool only six times in 35 years, but under Krueger they remained in the top every year and continued to do so after his departure. In 1998, newly-promoted Switzerland finished 4th, losing the bronze-medal game to the ascendant Czechs. It matched their best finish in the last 45 years. In all, Krueger coached the national team at 12 WM and three Olympics, departing after the 2010 Olympics. The team was always competitive, but most important it believed it belonged at the top and played with a confidence infused in them by Krueger. This confidence and feeling of belief was critical to Krueger’s ability to get the most out of each player and, by extension, the team. 

A CELEBRATION OF GLOBAL EXCELLENCE

“The Class of 2026 represents everything the IIHF Hall of Fame stands for—excellence, leadership, longevity, and profound impact on the global game,” said IIHF President Luc Tardif. “These seven honorees have left an enduring legacy that will inspire generations to come.”

The IIHF looks forward to celebrating these remarkable individuals during the 2026 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship in Zurich.