EDMONTON (CUP) — Although it’s only three letters, “Orr” is huge in the hockey world. Fans of yesteryear will never forget Bobby Orr flying through the air after scoring “the goal” 40 seconds into overtime in the 1970 Stanley Cup final. It’s a moment immortalized in the minds of fans and in photographs as one of the greatest in hockey history.
The Bruins defenceman was legendary for going coast-to-coast, while leaving opponents in his wake. Fast-forward 25 years, and a jersey with Orr emblazoned on the back could be seen flying down the ice at Clare Drake Arena last weekend at the Telus University Cup.
Number four has long since retired from hockey, but his nephew, Doug Orr, has carried on the family name while playing for the McGill Redmen. The younger Orr, who resembles his uncle, said that he doesn’t mind the comparisons he’s endured since he first started playing hockey.
“Hey, to be compared to Bobby Orr is definitely an honour. Anyone who says that [I’m like him], I’ll take that any day,” he laughs, adding that his uncle is one of his role models. “I look up to him-he’s one of my heroes.”
People see the name on the back of the jersey and assume that Doug is the elite player that his uncle was. In the McGill player notes, Orr is listed as the nephew of the NHL great; however, Doug admits that the name is about the only similarity between him and his uncle. Doug is a forward and wears number 27, while Bobby played defence and wore number four. Doug also admits that his uncle had the edge in skill on the ice.
“He was a superstar, and I know that there are good parts of my game, and I work hard to get better everyday, but to be compared to him is definitely a far stretch. Besides the looks, there aren’t too many things that are comparable between us-maybe the bad knees,” he joked.
His name alone hasn’t guaranteed the assistant captain an easy ride with the Redmen. Head coach Martin Raymond says that Orr, despite his family history, has earned every minute he’s played with McGill.
“He’s such a hardworking kid,” Raymond says. “He started with us as a guy who had to fight his way into every game to dress. You can’t measure the value of a player like that in the organization, when he’s having to battle just to get into the lineup. ”
In his final year of CIS hockey, Orr was poised to go out on top. Orr led the Redmen in scoring in the first part of the season with 21 points in 16 games, but on Jan. 20, he was hit from behind and suffered a concussion and neck injury, causing him to miss the rest of the regular season. True to his character though, Orr never gave up, and worked hard with doctors and physiotherapists to play against Wilfred Laurier on March 23. Raymond said it was tough to fill the void left by Orr, but added that he remained a strong leader while he recovered.
“During those two months he was injured, the team never missed a beat, because he was in the dressing room everyday, talking with the guys. He was there at games encouraging everybody and sharing in the experience with them. He was fantastic, even when he wasn’t dressed,” Raymond says. “His leadership was fantastic this year and I think that was one of the reasons we were so successful.”
Orr said that it was tough to see his CIS hockey career end, but that he plans to continue playing. Fans might still get to see an Orr flying down the ice in the near future.
“I’m going to move on and I definitely want to play pro hockey somewhere. I was just thinking about this tournament and this season, so I wasn’t worried about that, but now I can start making plans for next year.”
