Bobby Orr Single Season Assists

Lore & Background

Orr started in organized hockey at age eight, first as a forward before moving to defence. He joined the Oshawa Generals at age fourteen and was an all-star for three of his four seasons there. In 1966, he joined the Boston Bruins, a team that had not won a Stanley Cup since 1941 and had not made the playoffs since 1959. With Orr, the Bruins won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1970 and 1972. In 1970, Orr scored the clinching goal and was named playoff MVP; in 1972, the Cup-clinching goal was scored by a teammate, and Orr again was named playoff MVP. In the final achievement of his career, he was the MVP of the 1976 Canada Cup. Orr left Boston in June 1976 to join the Chicago Black Hawks in a move that involved a compensation dispute, but repeated injuries had effectively destroyed his left knee, and he played his last NHL game in 1978 before officially retiring in November 1978 at age 31.

Reader's Guide

Orr's first professional contract was one of the first in professional hockey to be negotiated by an agent and made him the highest-paid player in NHL history as a rookie. His second contract was the first million-dollar contract in the NHL. After retirement, Orr learned he was deeply in debt and had to sell off most of what he owned. He broke with his agent Alan Eagleson and sued the Black Hawks to settle his contract.

Orr returned to Boston, went into business to rebuild his finances, and aided investigations that led to Eagleson's fraud convictions and disbarment. Orr also supported a lawsuit that challenged the NHL over its control of its pension plan. After hockey, he became a scout for several professional teams, entered the player agent business in 1996, and was president of the Orr Hockey Group agency until its acquisition in 2018. He is active in charitable works and television commercials, and since 1996 has coached a team of junior hockey players in the annual CHL Top Prospects Game.