There is good news. The National Hockey League finally got it right.

After several waiting much too long, former St. Louis Blues Center Iceman Bernie Federko was elected last week into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Federko will be inducted at a ceremony on Monday November 4 in Toronto.

#24 will be the first "True Blue" member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Federko is the first person that was a member of the St. Louis Blues on Day 1 of his NHL career inducted into the Hall. He now joins the honor roll of Wayne Gretzky, Dale Hawerchuk, Doug Harvey, Dickie Moore, Glenn Hall, Jacques Plante, Peter Stastny and Joe Mullen: players who at one time in their career wore the blue note and are now members of the Hall of Fame's Players Category. Other Blues inducted are Lynn Patrick, Emile Francis, Scotty Bowman and Al Arbour (in the Builders Category). Dan Kelly is in the Media section.

"I am so proud to be going in as a St. Louis Blues. No one had done that as an original Blue," says Federko. "That is something that makes me so proud because I am a Blue""One guy who always had so much faith in me was (former St. Louis Coach, General Manager and Executive) Emile Francis. He believed in me,'' says #24. "He drafted me first and he played me. He's been trying so hard for me to become a member."

It's ironic because, Federko's election into the Hall caught everyone off guard. In a week filled with much emotion for Gateway City's sports fans with the passing of Jack Buck, the first place surge of the Cardinals and the shocking death of Darryl Kile, the timing of #24's selection into the Hall was an unexpected but an extremely pleasant surprise.

Ironic indeed: you see the Blues advanced only once to the semi-final round of the Stanley Cup playoffs during the Federko years in the Gateway City. As such, his numbers and accomplishments never did receive the acclaim throughout North America and hockey circles that they deserved. #24 suffered from much the same fate as Jackie Smith and Dan Dierdorf did before their inductions into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Federko was a victim of the same fate that is still haunts Roger Wehri: a Hall of Fame player who played his entire professional career for a team that never got close to a Championship.

Bernie Federko was the Blues' Stan Musial. St. Louis teams drafted both men. The Man played more seasons in a St. Louis Cardinal uniform than any other player. #24 played more seasons in a St. Louis Blues uniform than any other player. Although Musial hit an impressive number of career Major League home runs (475), the Man's noteworthy accomplishment was his consistency: the number of seasons batting over .300, collecting over 3,000 career hits and ending his playing days with a .331 batting average.

Although Federko scored an impressive number of career National Hockey League goals (369), his contributions were as consistent those of the Man. Perhaps the top contribution was the most points scored by any player in a St. Louis Blues uniform (1,073). Alan Adams in a June 19, 2002 column on St.LouisBlues.com chronicled the legend of #24:

"-St. Louis made him the seventh player chosen in the 1976 NHL Amateur Draft.
-Spent most of the 1976-77 season in Kansas City and won the Ken McKenzie Trophy as the Central Hockey League's Rookie of the Year.
-Named to the CHL Second All-Star Team (1977).
-Recorded his first of four 100-point seasons in 1980-81.
-Topped the 90-point mark during the NHL regular season seven times.
-Leading scorer for the St. Louis Blues nine times.
-In 1985-86, Federko led all playoff scorers (7 goals, 14 assists, 21 points in 19 games) when St. Louis came within a game of reaching the Stanley Cup finals.
-In 1986-87, he scored his 293rd career goal for St. Louis to pass Garry Unger as the franchise's all-time leader.
-On March 19, 1988, the veteran forward became the 22nd player in League history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.
-First player in NHL history to record at least 50 assists in 10 straight seasons (1979-88).
-Upon his retirement in 1990, he was the Blues' career leader in goals, assists, points, games played, and seasons of service."

Still, Bernie Federko's highest Hall of Fame tribute might be away from the rink.

During his tenure in a St. Louis Blues uniform, #24 saw his organization make change after change, and played hockey through turmoil after turmoil. Leo Boivan, Emile Francis, Barclay Plager, Red Berensen, Jacques Demers, Jacques Martin and Brian Sutter at one time strolled behind the Blues bench when Federko played in the Gateway City.

The day Bernie Federko was promoted from the University of Barclay Plager in Kansas City, the Solomon family owned the St. Louis Blues. The franchise was roughly ten years old then and all of the deferred salaries given to players in the early days were catching up with the owners. Saddled with high debt, the Solomons contemplated bankruptcy.

Then in early summer 1978, a hero on a white horse arrived. R Hal Dean and the Ralston Purina Corporation purchased the Blues and the facility at 5700 Oakland Avenue from the Solomons and possible extinction. Ralston renamed the facility the "Checkerdome" and provided capital to stabilize the franchise: including most overall points in 1980-81.

But R. Hal Dean retired from Ralston in 1983 and was replaced with William Stiritz. The new chairman insisted that Ralston must stick with it core business. Since Ralston manufactured dog food not hockey teams, the Blues again went up for sale. The summer of 1983 was long and stressful for local hockey fans. A for sale ad appeared in the Wall Street Journal for any buyer interested in owning a NHL team. Being "out of the hockey business", Ralston refused to send anyone to the NHL draft. The Blues drafted no one. Then the near-sale and transfer of the franchise to Bill Hunter in Saskatoon before Beverly Hills business Harry Ornest bought the soon-to-be contracted Blues in late July.

The eccentric Ornest owned the team and a roller coaster era for the franchise followed. A Mike Shanahan/Civic Progress syndicate purchased the franchise and building in 1986.

From 1976-1989, local hockey fans also saw Joe Mullen, Mike Liut and Jacques Demers leave our town for budgetary reasons or contract disputes. They dealt with the deaths of Bob Gassoff and Dan Kelly, and the controversial trade of Doug Gilmour to Calgary.

But, through it all, Bernie Federko never asked to be traded and never even considered leaving St. Louis. This future Hall of Famer could have demanded a trade as other athletes do in all sports because of their dislike of their surroundings. Still Federko stood by St. Louis and stood by the Blues. From coach to coach, from owner to owner, from crisis to crisis, Federko slipped on jersey number 24 and simply came to play every night.

These are the traits of a true Hall of Famer. Add #24's name to those of the Man's, Brock, Gibson, Ozzie, McCauley, Pettit, Wilson, Jackie Smith, Dierdorf and the others.

Congratulations Bernie, you do belong. The National Hockey League got it right.

Finally.