O'Ree had met Jackie Robinson in person twice when he was growing up. In 1958 a young man named Willie O'Ree made his debut in the National Hockey League. O'Ree rejoined the Bruins in 1960-61 and played in 43 games that season. However, it wasn't until 1957 that the league accepted their first Black player, Wilie O'Ree. He was with the Boston Bruins for two games. Willie Eldon O'Ree was born on October 15, 1935, in the city of Fredericton. O'Ree's NHL career, albeit brief, opened the door for other players of various races to dream about NHL careers. In 1961, after two more years in the minors, O'Ree had a longer stay with the Bruins--41 games. The second black player to join the NHL was Mike Marson, and that did not take place until the 1974-75 season with the Washington Capitals. O'Ree never played another game in the NHL. Little was made of this historic step at the time, but over the years, O’Ree found long-deserved recognition. O’Ree just released a new memoir, Willie: The Game Changing Story of the NHL’s First Black Player. He played professional hockey for 21 seasons -- … Now, even at the age of 85, he’s still not slowing down. by Mike Walsh. Willie O'Ree, the first black player in the NHL, is honored before a game between the Los Angeles Kings and the Tampa Bay Lightning in January 2017. After O'Ree played in the NHL, there was not another black hockey player in the league until 1974 when the Washington Capitals signed Canadian player Mike Marson. When on a winter evening—January 18, 1958—he stepped onto the ice at the Montreal Forum wearing the uniform of the Boston Bruins, he became the first Black athlete to play in the National Hockey League. His final NHL stat line is 45 games, 10 goals and 4 assists. The NHL created the Willie O’Ree All-Star Game in 1997 which pits coed teams against one another in conjunction with other NHL activities. The magnitude of Willie O'Ree's hockey career as a black player cannot be underestimated. The Willie O'Ree Story. Early Years. Willie O’Ree broke the NHL’s colour barrier on Jan. 18, 1958, but that was far from the beginning of his story. Willie O’Ree is the National Hockey League’s Director of Youth Development and ambassador for NHL Diversity, a post he has held since January 1998. He knew the personal danger he faced. When he started with the Boston Bruins in 1958, it was six years before U.S. civil rights legislation. O'Ree was the first Black man to play in the NHL. In 1998, O’Ree became the NHL’s director of youth development and has been actively trying to positively change the game ever since. Willie O'Ree, the First Black Hockey Player to Play in the NHL The NHL (National Hockey League) was founded in 1917 and is currently made up of 24 teams in the United States and 7 teams in Canada.
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