SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League today announced four inductees American Hockey League Hall of Fame like Class of 2025.
Honored by the AHL Hall of Fame Selection Committee as the latest group of honorees Rene Drolet, Dunc Fisher, Michael Leighton again Michel Picard.
The induction of the class of 2025 will take place as part of the festivities at The 2025 AHL All-Star Classic is presented by Spotlight 29 Casinoto be hosted by the Coachella Valley Firebirds. I American Hockey League Induction and Awards Ceremony presented by Spotlight 29 Casino and Silvercrest scheduled for February 3, 2025.
Established in 2006 to recognize, honor and celebrate individuals for their outstanding achievements and contributions to the American Hockey League, the AHL Hall of Fame is hosted online at AHLHallofFame.com and is accessible to fans around the world as part of the AHL Internet Network.
Operating since 1936, the American Hockey League serves as the premier league for the development of players, coaches, managers, administrators, broadcasters and personnel for all 32 National Hockey League teams. About 90 percent of NHL players each year graduate from the American Hockey League, and more than 130 honorary members of the Hockey Hall of Fame spent time in the AHL during their careers.
CLASS OF 2025: RENE DROLET
Rene Drolet he was a minor star in his hometown of Quebec City before joining the Quebec Aces of the American Hockey League and embarking on a successful career that would see him become the AHL’s top scorer during the decade of the 1970’s. Drolet recorded 30 goals and 72 points for the Aces in 1968-69, the first of 10 consecutive seasons with 20 or more goals and the first of six that he would be the team’s leading scorer. He was also one of the Aces’ top playoff producers as Quebec reached the Calder Cup finals in 1968 and 1969. Drolet remained with the Philadelphia Flyers affiliate when it moved to Richmond, Va., and spent three seasons with the Robins, including the team’s 1972-73 campaign in which he set career highs with 34 goals, 53 assists and 87 points. He finished his career with the Virginia Red Wings (1974-75) and the Rochester Americans (1977-78), retiring with 298 goals and 443 assists for 741 points in 840 AHL games.
CLASS OF 2025: DUNC FISHER
A native of Regina, Sask., Dunc Fisher known as a strong two-way wing in a 13-year professional career that included nine seasons in the American Hockey League. As a 20-year-old player in 1947-48, Fisher put up 59 points in 68 games for the New Haven Ramblers, then spent the next four seasons in the National Hockey League skating in New York and Boston. In 1952, Fisher joined the AHL’s Hershey Bears and quickly became one of the top scorers in that franchise’s history. He hit the 40-goal mark four times, and helped the team to back-to-back Calder Cup championships in 1958 and 1959. Fisher played in all six AHL all-star games held in the 1950s, and was voted First Team All-Star. -All-Star and Second Team selection four straight times from 1954-57. Fisher retired in 1960 with 285 goals and 335 assists for 620 points in 579 AHL games and remains the Bears’ all-time leader with 260 goals in a Hershey uniform. Fisher passed away in 2017 at the age of 90.
CLASS OF 2025: MICHAEL LEIGHTON
Michael Leighton he played parts of 15 seasons in the American Hockey League during his professional career that took him to 11 NHL organizations and 13 AHL cities. A sixth-round draft pick by the Chicago Blackhawks in 1999, Leighton’s pro journey began in Norfolk, Va., where he earned AHL All-Rookie team honors after going 27-16-8 with a 2.14 goals-against average. and a .920 save percentage for the Admirals in 2001-02. Leighton would go on to make five AHL All-Star Classic appearances and win the Aldege “Baz” Bastien Award as the league’s top goalie with the Albany River Rats in 2007-08. Leighton played 507 regular season games in the AHL, seventh in league history among goaltenders, and posted a career record of 250-186-55 (ranked fifth in all-time wins), a 2.38 GAA, a . 916 save percentage and an AHL record 50 shutouts. In postseason play, Leighton posted a 1.67 GAA and .946 save percentage in 28 Calder Cup Playoff appearances, and owns the AHL record for saves in a single game with 98, set in a five-overtime contest in April 24, 2008. .
CLASS OF 2025: MICHEL PICARD
Michel Picard he was one of the American Hockey League’s all-time leading scorers, posting 283 goals and 638 points in 582 games over nine seasons in the AHL. A native of Beauport, Que., he was drafted by the Hartford Whalers in 1989 and spent his rookie year in Binghamton before the Whalers moved their organization to Springfield the following season. As a 21-year-old in 1990-91, Picard led the AHL with 56 goals before recording 21 points in 18 playoff games to help the Indians capture the Calder Cup championship. He won another Calder Trophy with the Portland Pirates in 1993-94, when he followed up a 41-goal regular season with 11 more tallies in the playoffs, and scored 171 points in 112 games over two seasons with the Prince Edward Island Senators from 1994. to 1996. Picard played four seasons with Grand Rapids in the International Hockey League before scoring a team-best 31 goals with the Philadelphia Phantoms in 2000-01, and earning Second Team AHL All-Star honors – his fourth career back-to-back for the whole season. selection – after totaling 84 points in his return to the Griffins in 2002-03.
