Former Colorado College great Bill “Red” Hay, the first college player to play in the NHL, was named to the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday as part of the 2015 induction class.

Hay served as president and chief operating officer of Hockey Canada; part-owner, president and chief executive officer of the Calgary Flames (1991-96) and mostly recently, chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame (1998-2013). He was named under the builders’ category for his work helping develop the game.

“Being recognized by my hockey peers is truly a great honor,” Hay said in a statement. “Seeing the game — and the Hockey Hall of Fame — become truly international has been a tremendously rewarding experience.”

Hay, 79, is the first former CC player to make hockey’s hall. Dutch Clark and Steve Sabol were both named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The other 2015 hockey inductees are players Sergei Fedorov, Phil Housley, Nicklas Lidstrom, Chris Pronger, and Angela Ruggiero. Carolina owner Peter Karmanos, Jr. was also named in the builders category.

Hay, a 6-foot-3, 198-pound center, was on his way to start his pro career in Winnipeg in 1955 when the

Saskatchewan native decided to hitchhike his way to Colorado Springs to see if he could land a college scholarship. The two-time All-American helped the Tigers to their second NCAA championship in 1957 and led the Western Collegiate Hockey Association in points (80, 48 assists) the next season.

His pro career was even better. Hay played on Chicago’s “Million Dollar Line” with Bobby Hull and Murray Balfour and was named as the 1959-60 rookie of the year.

The CC geology graduate enjoyed a strong eight-year career (506 games, 386 points) before retiring to enter the Alberta oil industry. He led Chicago in regular-season points (59, 48 assists) during the 1961 Stanley Cup championship season.

Hay has made a number of contributions to CC over the years. The school’s athletic performance suite was named in his honor in 2014 during the program’s 75th anniversary celebration.

“Frankly, I’m surprised this induction did not occur sooner,” said retired CC sports information director Dave Moross. “Red Hay’s life has been one big hockey highlight for more than half a century. His playing career – both at Colorado College and in the NHL – speaks for itself. But he’s continued to serve as a diligent ambassador for the game since he hung up his skates. CC should be very proud.”

Lidstrom earned seven Norris Trophies as the NHL’s top defenseman and won four Stanley Cups with Detroit. His longtime teammate Fedorov also made it in his first year of eligibility after putting up 1,452 points (969 assists) in 1,248 games.

Ruggiero was a defenseman on four U.S. Olympic teams and was the fourth woman to be elected.

Housley has the most points (1,232, 894 assists) of any American defenseman. Pronger hasn’t played since November 2011 because of post-concussion syndrome and now works for the NHL.