Bobby Orr
Defenceman who revolutionized the position and won two Art Ross Trophies.
Robert Gordon Orr was born on March 20, 1948, in Parry Sound, Ontario, a town on Georgian Bay. His grandfather, Robert Orr, had been a top-tier soccer professional who emigrated from Ballymena, Northern Ireland, early in the 20th century. Orr’s father, Doug, was once a hockey prospect but turned down an offer from the Atlantic City Seagulls in 1942 to serve in the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. After the war, he returned to Parry Sound, his wife Arva Steele, and a job at a dynamite factory. The couple had five children: Patricia, Ronnie, Bobby, Penny, and Doug Jr. Bobby was a sick baby at birth, and his survival was uncertain.
Orr showed hockey talent early. He got his first skates at age four and played shinny before joining organized hockey at five in the “minor squirt” division. Though small and frail, he could skate faster than anyone his age. Until he was ten, he played as a forward. His coach, former NHL player Bucko McDonald, moved him to defence but encouraged him to use his stickhandling, skating, and scoring to make offensive rushes. McDonald later said he told Orr’s father that defence was the boy’s natural position. Orr credited McDonald: “Bucko taught me almost everything I know.”
Boston Bruins scouts noticed Orr at a youth tournament in Gananoque, Ontario, in spring 1961. Bruins scout Wren Blair called him “a combination of Doug Harvey and Eddie Shore.” The Bruins invested CA$1,000 to sponsor his minor hockey team in fall 1961. Though the Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, and Montreal Canadiens were also interested, Orr signed with the Bruins in 1962, saying he wanted to be part of their rebuilding program. Blair helped start a new Oshawa Generals franchise, and the Bruins owned 51% of it, requiring Orr to play for Oshawa. At fourteen, Orr joined the Generals, the Bruins’ junior affiliate, and was an all-star for three of his four seasons there.
Orr joined the Boston Bruins in 1966. The team had not won a Stanley Cup since 1941 and had missed the playoffs since 1959. With Orr, the Bruins won the Cup twice, in 1970 and 1972. Both times, Orr scored the clinching goal and was named playoff MVP. He won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenceman eight consecutive times and the Hart Trophy as league MVP three straight years.
Quick Facts
- Halloffame
- 1979
- Birth Date
- 1948-03-20
- Birth Place
- Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada
- Height Ft
- 6
- Height In
- 0
- Weight Lb
- 197
- Position
- Defence
- Shoots
- Left
- Played For
- Boston Bruins / Chicago Black Hawks
- Career Start
- 1966
- Career End
- 1978
- Medaltemplates
- Men's ice hockey / Canada Cup / 1976 Canada · Ice hockey
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Orr started organized hockey at age eight, initially playing as a forward before moving to defence. His coach, former NHL player Bucko McDonald, encouraged him to use his skating skills to control play. Orr's play in Ontario provincial competition attracted NHL scouts as early as age twelve. At fourteen, he joined the Oshawa Generals, the Bruins' junior affiliate, and was an all-star for three of his four seasons there. In 1966, Orr 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; both times Orr scored the clinching goal and was named playoff MVP. He remains the only defenceman to have won the league scoring title with two Art Ross Trophies and holds the record for most points and assists in a single season by a defenceman. Orr won a record eight consecutive Norris Trophies and three consecutive Hart Trophies. In 1976, Orr left Boston as a free agent to join the Chicago Black Hawks, but repeated injuries had effectively destroyed his left knee, and he retired in 1978 at age 30.
Reader's Guide
Orr's first professional contract was one of the first in professional hockey to be negotiated by an agent, making 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 aided investigations that led to Eagleson's fraud convictions and disbarment, and supported a lawsuit challenging the NHL over its control of its pension plan. Orr was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979 at age 31, the youngest to be inducted at that time. In 2017, he was named by the NHL as one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history. After his playing career, he became a scout for several professional teams, entered the player agent business in 1996, and served as president of the Orr Hockey Group agency until its acquisition in 2018. He is also 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.
More in Hockey Hall of Fame Defencemen 1-24
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