DID YOU KNOW THAT?

January 18, 1958 - Willie O’Ree debuted with the Boston Bruins, becoming the first black player in the National Hockey League. O’Ree played in only two games that year and was sent back to the minor leagues until 1961 when he played in 43 g...ames. He had 10 goals and 10 assists in his 45 game NHL career, all in 1961. O’Ree was born October 15, 1935 in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. He started his minor league hockey career in 1957. During his NHL career, O’Ree noted that “racist remarks were much worse in the United States than in Canada.” From 1961 to his retirement in 1978, O’Ree played in the minor leagues, winning two scoring titles. In 1998, he was appointed Director of Youth Development for the NHL/USA Hockey Diversity Task Force which encourages minority youth to learn and play hockey. In 2008, the City of Fredericton named a sports complex in his honor and on April 7, 2010 he received the Order of Canada, the highest civilian award for a Canadian citizen. O’Ree published his autobiography, “The Autobiography of Willie O’Ree: Hockey’s Black Pioneer,” in 2000.