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Steve Dietrich Voted Into The NLL Hall Of Fame

The National Lacrosse League has announced that Steve Dietrich has been voted into the league’s Hall of Fame, Class of 2012. The mainstay goaltender played nearly two decades in the league and continues to serve the game past his playing career, first as a goaltending coach and now as a general manager. 
 
Dietrich played 18 seasons of professional lacrosse, with stops in Baltimore (1992), Detroit (1994), Rochester (1995-2001), Buffalo (2002-2007), Calgary (2008), Edmonton (2009) and Toronto (2009-2010). He won a league championship in 1997 with Rochester, and was named Championship Game Most Valuable Player in the 15-12 win over Buffalo. 
 
In 2006 he won the League’s Most Valuable Player Award, becoming the first and still the only goaltender to ever win the award. He had one of the best statistical individual seasons for a goaltender in league history that year, posting a save percentage of .808 and a goals against average of 9.97, leading Buffalo to the Championship Game. Dietrich won the Goaltender of the Year Award in 2005 & 2006, the first goaltender to win the award in back to back seasons. He made 5,531 career saves while playing more than 8,300 minutes of career playing time.  Had a career won-loss record of 60-47.
 
Following retirement from his playing career in June 2010, Dietrich was hired by Toronto Rock to be the team’s Goaltending Coach.  He served in that position for the 2011 & 2012 seasons.  On July 19, Dietrich was appointed to his current position as General Manager of the Buffalo Bandits.
 
“It’s an incredible honor,” said Dietrich, upon being informed of his pending induction into the Hall of Fame. “As I played my career, I never would have dreamed that this could have happened. To be included with the legendary names that are already in the Hall of Fame, it’s an incredibly humbling feeling.”
 
Of the six finalists on the ballot, Steve Dietrich was selected on 79 percent of the ballots and was the only nominees selected on the required minimum of 75 percent of the ballots cast. The veteran goaltender and current General Manager of the Buffalo Bandits will be the lone inductee in the Class of 2012. The ballots were cast by the NLL teams, current members of the Hall of Fame and senior members of the league’s covering media. 

Dietrich’s solo induction means that for the second consecutive year there will be just one inductee as last year Rock goaltender Bob Watson was alone in the Class of 2011.  Watson and Dietrich were teammates with the Rock in 2009 and 2010 as well as during their Junior lacrosse playing days in Kitchener-Waterloo.
 
The Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony for Dietrich will take place in Toronto at the Westin Harbour Castle on October 3. Tickets for the ceremony will go on sale in the near future.
 
Finalists on the Hall of Fame Ballot
 
Steve Dietrich – 79%
The 1993 Buffalo Bandits – 62%
Pat Coyle – 58%
Chris Driscoll – 29%
Regy Thorpe – 25%
Curt Malawsky – 16%
 
(Nominees must be selected on a minimum 75 % of ballots for induction into Hall of Fame)

Toronto Rock