Background

Bobby Orr was born on March 20, 1948 in Parry Sound on the shores of Georgian Bay in Ontario, Canada. He is the third child born to Doug Orr, an explosives packer, and Arva Orr.

Education

Bobby Orr started skating at the age of four when a family friend bought him a pair of skates. They were too large, but his father filled the toes with paper to make them fit. While still in kindergarten Orr began playing in the Parry Sound Minor Squirt Hockey League, which he dominated by the time he was nine years old. Although shorter and thinner than many of the older boys against whom he competed, Orr exhibited a singular resolve to improve his strength, conditioning, and skill, practicing alone every day after school until dark. His work ethic, combined with his natural ability, gave Orr a critical advantage over his rivals. The Boston Bruins scouts discovered Orr in 1960 when he was playing midget hockey for the Parry Sound Bantam All-Stars. When he was thirteen he signed a junior amateur contract with Boston, agreeing to play for the Oshawa Generals of the Ontario Hockey Association. He never graduated from high school.

Career

Orr started his professional hockey career young. The Boston Bruins first took notice of him when he was twelve and playing in a bantam-league hockey All-Star game, to which the Bruins had sent scouts to check on some older players. Orr played all sixty minutes of the game, minus two minutes spent in the penalty box, and already displayed an ability to control the puck and the game that he would later be notable for in his professional career.

At the age of fourteen, the Boston Bruins signed Orr into their organization for $2,800. They arranged for him to play in Canada's Junior A hockey league, which was populated mostly by nineteen- and twenty-year-olds with strong hopes of making it to the NHL. Orr continued to live in his hometown of Perry Sound, Ontario, a three-hour commute from the rink where his team, the Oshawa Generals, played and practiced. Orr in fact did not practice with the team and only played in home games, but he still made the second all-star team in his first year. He made the first all-star team every year after, and, at the age of sixteen, he appeared on the cover of Canada's national magazine, Maclean's.

At eighteen, the youngest age at which a person was allowed to play in the NHL, Orr signed a record-breaking two-year contract with the Bruins. Orr would be making $25,000 a year, plus an undisclosed signing bonus estimated to be $25,000 to $35,000 itself. The previous record for a rookie contract was $8,000 a year, and at that time only three players in the entire NHL, all tested veterans, were making more than $25,000 a year. Boston fans quickly pinned their hopes for a Stanley Cup, a prize which had eluded them for twenty-five years, on this fresh-faced, buzz-cut young star. He would not disappoint them.

Orr made his NHL season debut on October 19, 1966, against the Detroit Red Wings. Three days later, he scored his first NHL goal against the Montreal Canadiens. On December 4, 1966, Bobby injured his knees for the first time in the NHL. He would miss nine games and the Bruins would lose six of them. The team finished with a 17-43-10 record.

For the season, Orr scored 13 goals and 28 assists. It was one of the best rookie seasons in NHL history to that point by a defenceman.

In 1967-1968, the second season, because of the injuries, Orr participated in only 46 games in which he scored 11 goals and had 20 assists. He returned in January and played in the NHL All-Star Game, his first of eight appearances overall. Afterward, Orr had to sit out five games due to soreness in his left knee.

In 1968-1969, Orr skipped the pre-season but was in uniform for the season start. He finished the season playing through the pain. Bobby scored 21 goals on the season and totaled 64 points.

Robert went on to lead the Bruins in a march through the 1970 playoffs scoring nine goals and 11 assists. The march culminated on May 10, 1970, when Orr scored one of the most famous goals in hockey history. For the season, Orr received from the Bruins a solid gold puck, one of four they gave out to each of the four Bruins who scored over 100 points that season.

On August 26, 1971, Orr signed a new five-year contract, for US$200,000 per season - the NHL's first million dollar contract. In 1971-1972 season, Orr was second in the scoring race to Esposito with 117 points. In the 1972 playoffs, Orr again led the Bruins to the Stanley Cup. He led the scoring in the playoffs and scoring the championship-winning goal against New York.

In 1972-1973 Orr amassed 101 points during the regular season. He only played 63 games due to injury. In 1973-1974, Bobby led the Bruins to another first-place finish in the regular season. His point total rebounded to 122 with 32 goals and 90 assists. The Bruins made it to the Stanley Cup final, but lost this time to the Philadelphia Flyers in six games.

1974-1975 was Orr's last full season and his last season playing with Esposito. The Bruins placed second in the Adams Division and lost to the Chicago Black Hawks in the first round of the 1975 playoffs. With this season, Bobby had tallied 100 points in six straight seasons.

The 1975-1976 season was Orr's final season with the Bruins. Before the season started Orr underwent another surgery. He returned to the line-up on November 8, 1975, the day after the Bruins traded Esposito to the New York Rangers. Orr was able to play the next ten games for the team but had to stop on November 28 due to pain in his knee. His season was over after ten games and he would not play again for the Bruins.

On June 8, 1976, Bobby officially signed with the Black Hawks. By 1978, Orr had undergone over a dozen knee surgeries and barely skated anymore. However, in the summer of 1978, he decided to make a comeback. He played six games of the 1978-1979 season and concluded that he could no longer play. He informed the Black Hawks that he was retiring. He started a new role as an assistant to Chicago general manager Bob Pulford. He scored his last NHL goal and point against Detroit on October 28, 1978, at Detroit's Olympia Stadium.

Bobby Orr retired having scored 270 goals and 645 assists for 915 points in 657 games. He served briefly as an assistant coach for Chicago and as a consultant to the NHL and the Hartford Whalers. Later, Orr moved back to the Boston area and formed Can-Am Enterprises with partners Tom Kelly and Paul Shanley.

Orr became an agent representing hockey players in 1996. He purchased the Woolf Associates agency founded by Boston lawyer Bob Woolf and became a certified agent. In 2000 player agent Rick Curran merged his agency with Orr's. Curran and Orr along with partner Paul Krepelka incorporated the agency as Orr Hockey Group in February 2002.

For a number of years, Orr has coached a team of top Canadian Hockey League junior players against a similar team coached by Don Cherry in the annual CHL Top Prospects Game. He stepped down before the 2011 game for the birth of his second grandchild.

Bobby also wrote several books. His work, Bobby Orr: My Game (1974), written with Mark Mulvoy, details his early life and career. On November 3, 2013, Orr's autobiography titled Orr: My Story, debuted at the #8 position on The New York Times best-seller list for nonfiction.

Achievements

• 

  Although Orr has not skated professionally for many years, his influence can still be seen on the game. He is still the only defenseman ever to lead the league in scoring even once, let alone twice, but the idea of defensive players participating in offensive plays is now seen across the NHL. His legendary puck-handling moves, which included a trademark 360 degree evasive spin, continue to inspire, and his thirty second and longer penalty-killing games of keep-away remain legendary.
  
  Bobby is a recipient of numerous awards, among which are Conn Smythe Trophy, Hart Memorial Trophy, James Norris Trophy, and others. Orr was awarded the Multiple Sclerosis Silver Hope Chest Award by the Multiple Sclerosis Society for his numerous and unselfish contributions to society. In 1979, he was invested as an officer in the Order of Canada. In 1995, Bobby was inducted into the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame. Orr has also been honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame in Toronto.
  
  In 2004, an elementary school in South Oshawa, named after Orr, opened. A bronze statue of Orr stands next to Boston's TD Garden, the Bruins' home arena. It was unveiled on May 10, 2010. Two buildings in Parry Sound are named after Orr. The first is the Bobby Orr Hall of Fame, where his Order of Canada medal is on display along with other exhibits. The second is the Bobby Orr Community Centre, a multi-purpose entertainment facility.
  
  In 2017, Bobby Orr was included in the List of 100 Greatest NHL Players according to the league itself.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Bobby: My Story in Pictures

    (The incredible story of the life and phenomenal career of...)

    2018
  • Bobby Orr: My Game

    (Bobby Orr himself gives the first full explanation of how...)

    1974
  • Orr: My Story

    (Bobby Orr is often referred to as the greatest defenseman...)

    2013
  • Orr on Ice

    (A photographic illustration of Orr's style of playing ice...)

    1970

Views

Orr is known for his charitable works. He visited Boston Children's Hospital, with a box of programs, pennants, pucks, pictures and Boston memorabilia. Bobby was also involved in numerous charity fund raisers.

Quotations: "There are no environments where you're only going to win, because life just isn't like that."

"Forget about style; worry about results."

"Developing better people should be the number one goal for any coach when dealing with kids. In trying to develop better people, we are going to develop more and better pros."

"Always remember that those who are closest to you will be affected by your dreams. Somewhere along the way, they will undoubtedly have to sacrifice something in order to help you realize your goals."

"You never know how a single interaction with a person might affect their life, so you must constantly try to be at your best."

"Passion is a key word for any athlete, regardless of the sport. It's important in any profession, for that matter."

"Firing pucks at your garage door is probably something that young hockey players have always done."

"If you have any reason for coaching other than wanting to develop better people through minor sports, you should probably step aside."

"Consistency in coaching styles is, I think, very important, and something I wish more coaches would consider, regardless of the level at which they find themselves coaching."

"Of course, the final piece of the puzzle is passion. Without it, the hard work is just too hard."

Personality

Orr is known for his taste in clothes and style of dress. In his early years, he was also known for keeping a clean apartment and not drinking, smoking, or night-clubbing.

Physical Characteristics: In his prime, Orr stood six feet tall and weighed approximately 197 pounds. With his blond hair, winning smile, and youthful appearance, he was the epitome of the boy next door.

Interests

• fishing, jigsaw puzzles

• Sport & Clubs

  golf

Connections

Orr met Margaret Louise "Peggy" Wood during his vacation. She is a speech therapist. The couple became engaged on Christmas Day, 1972, and married in September 1973 in Parry Sound. They have two sons, Darren and Brent. Darren is a player's agent at Orr Hockey Group. Orr's granddaughter Alexis was born in 2009. A second grandchild, Robert, was born in January 2011.

Father:

Doug Orr

(January 15, 1925 - 2007)

Mother:

Arva (Steele) Orr

(1922 - 2000)

Spouse:

Margaret Louise Wood

Son:

Brent Orr

Son:

Darren Orr

Darren Orr has been part of the Orr Hockey Group team since 2005 and is a NHLPA certified agent.

Friend:

Derek Sanderson

(born June 16, 1946)

Derek Michael Sanderson is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre and two-time Stanley Cup winner who set up what many consider to be the greatest goal in National Hockey League history.

References

• The Boy in Number Four Bobby Orr played in the NHL with the Boston Bruins for ten seasons leading them to two Stanley Cup victories. He also played with the Chicago Black Hawks for two more - all the while wearing jersey number 4. In the Boy in Number Four, readers will get a glimpse of this hockey legend as a boy and discover the hard work, commitment, and fun it takes to make a dream into reality.
  2014
• Bobby Orr: Fire on Ice This book traces the development of the Canadian superstar's professional career which began at the age of fourteen.
  1975
• The Boys of Winter: The Untold Story of a Coach, a Dream, and the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team Wayne Coffey casts a fresh eye on the seminal sports event "Miracle on Ice", giving readers an ice-level view of the amateurs who took on a Russian hockey juggernaut at the height of the Cold War. He details the unusual chemistry of the Americans - formulated by their fiercely determined coach, Herb Brooks - and seamlessly weaves portraits of the boys with the fluid action of the game itself. Coffey also traces the paths of the players and coaches since their stunning victory, examining how the Olympic events affected their lives.
  2005
• Searching for Bobby Orr bby Orr is one of the most enduring in all of sports. Even those who have never played the game of hockey know the mystique and tradition surrounding Boston's immortal defenseman. In the glory years of the Original Six, he and Gordy Howe were the Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio of their sport with equally as rabid a following. In Searching for Bobby Orr, Canada's premier sportswriter gives his readers a compelling and graceful look at the life and time of Bobby Orr that is also a revealing portrait of the game and a county in transition.
  2006
• Number Four, Bobby Orr! Based on a true story from the life of hockey legend Bobby Orr, this book relays an important message about getting over hurdles and setbacks.
  2003
• The Official Site of Bobby Orr