Former Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith to be inducted into Hockey Hall of Fame
Duncan Keith was sorting through papers Tuesday at his home in Penticton, British Columbia, when his phone buzzed.
“I saw a 416 number pop up,” the former Blackhawks defenseman said. “I didn’t recognize [it], but I knew that’s the Toronto area code, so I tried to pick it up as quick as I could.”
It was indeed from Toronto — in fact, from the Hockey Hall of Fame. Outgoing chairman Lanny McDonald, a 1992 inductee, informed Keith he’ll be inducted into the 2025 class in his first year of eligibility.
“[I got] goosebumps when they started telling me,” Keith said. “It was a pretty surreal moment, sitting in my living room here, knowing that I’m going into the Hall of Fame with players that I grew up idolizing and trying to emulate.”
The defensive guru behind the Hawks’ three recent Stanley Cup championships, Keith will be one of eight people inducted at a ceremony Nov. 10. It’s the second consecutive year a former Hawks player will be inducted, after Jeremy Roenick’s long-awaited call last year. Keith will be the second core player from the Hawks’ 2010s dynasty era to be added, following Marian Hossa in 2020.
The other 2025 player inductees are former Bruins star Zdeno Chara, former Sharks star Joe Thornton, women’s hockey greats Jennifer Botterill and Brianna Decker and former journeyman forward Alexander Mogilny, a fan favorite finally elected in his 17th year of eligibility. Longtime Boston University coach Jack Parker and former Canadian women’s national team coach Daniele Sauvageau will be inducted as builders.
Surprisingly, former Canadiens goalie Carey Price wasn’t elected this year but likely will be in the coming years. From the Hawks, Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews unquestionably will join Keith and Hossa in the Hall once they retire and become eligible.
“Having such great teammates, we all pushed one another to get better,” Keith said. “It wasn’t really until I retired that the thought had come into my head about the Hall of Fame, but that was really only because people were asking me that question.”
In addition to the three Stanley Cups, Keith twice won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman (2010, 2014) and won the Conn Smythe Trophy as MVP of the 2015 playoffs. Outside of the NHL, he earned two Olympic gold medals with Canada in 2010 and 2014.
The Winnipeg native racked up 625 points in 1,192 appearances over 16 seasons in Chicago before finishing his career with a brief stint with the Oilers in 2021-22. He ranks second in Hawks history in games played (behind Stan Mikita) and second in points by a defenseman (behind Doug Wilson).
“Duncan defined the modern archetype for a complete defenseman,” Hawks chairman Danny Wirtz said Tuesday in a statement. “His opponents feared his shutdown defense as much as they respected his offensive prowess. He played with grit and heart, giving his all every second he was on the ice.
“While Blackhawks fans have long understood Duncan’s profound impact on the game, we’re thrilled to see his legacy now celebrated on hockey’s biggest stage as he takes his well-deserved place among the game’s all-time greats.”
Beyond his individual accomplishments, Keith helped pioneer the modern approach to NHL defense: more aggressive than passive, more proactive than reactive. Despite being neither a prototypical “offensive” nor “defensive” defenseman, his two-way ability made him invaluable to the Hawks and a veritable unicorn in the NHL.
Since retirement, he has been coaching 12-year-old son Colton’s youth team.
“I hope my teammates and coaches would say I was a good teammate that they liked going to battle with, somebody they would want to have on their side any time [we were] going into a big game or a tough situation,” Keith said. “I always took a lot of pride in plain, old hard work.”