Bobby Orr was born and raised in Parry Sound and yesterday we went to the museum that bears his name. It is co-located with the
Charles W. Stockey Centre for the Performing Arts down on Bay Street across from the marina.
It is really a beautiful setting for the Centre and Museum.
I learned a lot about the sport of hockey and the impact Bobby Orr had on it. He started playing at age four and went up through the ranks of the local hockey clubs and into the minor leagues before playing most of his career with the Boston Bruins.
He is ranked 1st all-time among defensemen in scoring and is considered one of the best hockey players ever. He led the Boston Bruins to two National Hockey League Stanley Cup Championships in 1970 and 1972.
He won the Rookie of the Year, Most Valuable Player, and Outstanding Player of the Playoffs and League Leading Scorer honors. He retired in 1978 due to knee injuries at the age of 31 and was inducted into the NHL Hall of Fame in 1979.
The museum was a great collection of artifacts, pictures and information about his life and his accomplishments in hockey. Within his museum he established a Bobby Orr Hall of Fame to recognize people in the region and acknowledge their achievements in Canada sports which I thought was pretty cool.
The museum also has a couple of interactive, hands-on hockey rinks for visitors to try. It was really strange for me and I imagine it would be similar to someone picking up a golf club for the first time. I had no sense of how to hold the hockey stick nor how to take a swipe at the puck.
He also has a community center named after him is quite an icon in Canada. He participated in the opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games in Vancouver this past winter carrying the Olympic flag.
After our time in the museum, we did some grocery shopping and went back to the Roadrunner at our KOA park campsite. Earlier in the day I went for a lengthy run through the woods and was ready for some reading. I continued with
The National Dream before it was time for dinner. We watched rookie sensation Stephen Strasburg as the Nationals beat the Reds 8-5.
That was our day in Parry Sound ~ thanks for viewing!
You were beginning to scare me with the hockey mask on..visions of Jason from the movie Halloween were dancing through my head...Bobby Orr was at the Blackhawk's celebration here in Chicago, as was Stan Mikita..He is still quite a guy...and quite the partier!! We now have that little Canadian town on our "to do "list. Thanks for the tour!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tour, Randy. Bobby Orr is one of my all-time favourite hockey players - he was one of those "naturals" that comes along once in a generation. Great pics of Parry Sound too from the museum, it looks to be quite a nice place to visit.
ReplyDeleteI have always liked Bobby Orr. I was so proud to see him in the opening ceremonies at the Olympics. I have always been proud that he's a Canadian like myself.
ReplyDeleteHi Randy and Pam
ReplyDeleteIt has been a week since I have been able to catch up with you. It is great to see the pictures of the area you are in and the museum. The little market sounds like a wonderful place to spend a couple of hours.
Hope all is well with you both.