Willie O’Ree remains dedicated to growing hockey and advocating for social change – Orange County Register

On Saturday, young hockey players from around the country participated in the Willie O'Ree Skills Weekend with the event's namesake, Willie O'Ree (right), and 88-year-old Willie O'Ree, the NHL's first black player. , and posing for a photo with current Ducks right wing Troy Terry at Great Park Ice in Irvine. (Photo by Jeff Antenore, contributing photographer)

Before the Kings took the throne in Los Angeles, before the Ducks moved to Anaheim, or before Wayne Gretzky landed in Southern California, Willie O'Ree was one of the area's first hockey stars, playing for the Los Angeles Blades and the original San Diego He shined on the ice with the Gulls. .

O'Ree, who broke the NHL's color barrier as the first black player with the Boston Bruins in 1958 (a decade and a half before any other player went pro), became the leading scorer in the old Western Hockey League. Ta. By moving to the right side, he can finally see oncoming passes. Ollie, now 88, lost vision in his right eye when he was hit by a puck at age 19, but kept his limitations a secret in order to continue playing hockey. Olly was so devoted that his parents died thinking he could see with both eyes.

“It's like the dreams and goals I set for myself are gone,” Ollie said. “I was released from the hospital and back on the ice within five weeks. I'm left-handed and play left wing, so to compensate I have to turn my head all the way to the right to pick up the puck. I didn't. I came down and took the net off, so I said, “Forget what you can't see and focus on what you can see.''

Ahead of Tuesday's freeway faceoff between the Ducks and Kings, he announced a different type of commitment: one that transcends regions and identities as a diverse collection of players from across North America converge on Anaheim for an on-ice game. He has developed a steadfast and dedicated commitment to growing the game. Work, trips to pro games, meetings with Ollie and Ducks star Troy Terry.

“You don't have to spend a lot of time just meeting someone for the first time and shaking their hand. These kids will never forget being here in Anaheim,” O'Ree said. “I think 15 years from now, if you ask them, they'll be able to tell you the hotels they stayed in, who they played with and everything else, because things like this mean so much to them. is.”

Mr. Olley has received honors including the U.S. Congressional Gold Medal and the Order of Canada. He has also seen players he inspires achieve greatness. Although the number of Black, Asian, Latinx, Indigenous, and other minority NHL players remains small, Black players are the only head coach (Dirk Graham, the first of four Black NHL team captains) He also became a Norris Trophy winner (PK). Saban), Vezina Trophy winner (Grant Fuhr), All-Star Game MVP (Wayne Simmons), Art Ross Trophy winner (Jarome Iginla), and most recently, General Manager (Mike Grier).

While Ollie cherished the respect and gratitude he felt from the trailblazers who followed him, he also looked forward to meeting new trailblazers like Arcadia's Filipino-American Jason Robertson. He cracked the Toronto Maple Leafs roster.

“Today we have an East Indian player, a West Indian player, an Asian player. I don't think that's going to happen unless Mr. O'Ree breaks that color barrier,” said Simmons, who started his NHL career with the Kings. Told. “It's not just about black hockey players, of course he's a big inspiration for us, but he's helped break down a lot of stereotypes.”

Ollie is excited to see participation in women's hockey soar, from the grassroots level all the way through to the PWHL's first season.

“I'm really excited about the growth of women's sports. At Willie O'Ree weekend, some of the women outperformed the men. You didn't know they were any different until they took off their helmets. “It was,” Olly said.

Despite ending his active duty nearly 45 years ago, Ollie still flies many miles, starting in La Mesa and traveling extensively, primarily throughout the United States.

But as a young multisport athlete from New Brunswick, the experience of crossing Canada's southern border for the first time was informative, formative, and harrowing. O'Ree was invited to a minor league baseball tryout for the Milwaukee Braves' affiliate team in Georgia, where he said he experienced prejudice, racism and ugliness unlike anything he had ever experienced before. Ta. He said Mr Olly showed sadness when he was removed from the team, but felt elation when he was told he would be able to return home.

“Black people had to sit in the back of the bus. After five days on the bus, as we rambled north, I started moving up on the bus,” Ollie said. . “Right now I'm sitting in the middle of the bus. I arrived in Bangor, Maine, and I was sitting in the front of the bus. Three hours left, I was in my hometown, and I got off the bus and said to myself, “Willie, forget about baseball and focus on hockey.''

Ollie was traded to the Blades while he was still a member of an NHL affiliate, and the Blades were not. But the ostensible demotion brought Mr. Ollie to the region he has called home since the 1960s, where he met his wife, started a family, and solidified his presence in several communities.

“The best thing I ever did was come here,” Ollie said.

“Being from eastern Canada where there's eight feet of snow everywhere you look in the winter, I came out here and fell in love with this climate. The teams I played for treated me well, so I fell in love with this place. I got married here in 1969. I said, 'This is great.'

Olly has been an integral part of rink establishments, clinics, and outreach efforts, especially in Southern California. When O'Ree first started acclimating, hockey was a niche sport with no top-level professional franchises.