Black History - Black Hockey Players #10 - Willie O'Ree

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Answering the question, "Are there any black hockey players?" Yes, and the best place to start would be with the guy that broke the color barrier in the National Hockey League. We are at #10: Willie O'Ree. Although he spent nearly all of his career playing in the minor leagues, Willie O'Ree will be forever known as the first black man to play in the NHL. Legally blind in one eye after being hit by a puck (a condition that he kept hidden,) Willie O'Ree made his NHL debut with the Boston Bruins on January 18th, 1958, after getting called up from the minors to replace an injured player. O'Ree played just two games for the Bruins that season, but rejoined the club in 1961, scoring four goals and notching 10 assists in 43 games that season. (The National Hockey League wouldn't see another black player until 1974, when the Washington Capitals drafted winger Mike Marson.) In the minor league Western Hockey League, O'Ree won two scoring titles, and had four seasons in which he scored 30 or more goals. Willie O'Ree was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018, has been awarded both the Order of New Brunswick and Order of Canada, and is in the Brietbard Hall of Fame, honoring his time spent playing for the San Diego Gulls minor league team, where his number has been retired and hangs from the rafters. (Info verified by Wikipedia)