Career
He was a native of the Kitchener-Waterloo area of Ontario. Bauer was the younger brother of hockey player Bobby Bauer. A noted sportsman in his own right, Bauer turned down an offer to play for the Boston Bruins Olympic farm team at the age of 16, so that he could attend Saint Michael"s College School in Toronto, where he played for various school teams from 1941 to 1945, and later the University of Toronto.
Following the end of the war, he decided against playing professional hockey, instead, choosing to enter the priesthood.
In 1953 after his ordination as a priest, Bauer returned to Saint Michael"s College as a teacher and became coach of the school"s junior team In 1962, Bauer took a position at the Saint Mark"s College and the University of British Columbia, where he came up with the idea to establish a national team of top amateurs from across Canada.
The idea was presented to the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) and by the end of 1962, Bauer"s idea was accepted. Bauer made up his team of several top amateur players who became University of British Columbia students including Brian Conacher, Roger Bourbonnais and Marshall Johnston, and in 1964 they participated in the Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria.
The team put up a good fight, losing 3–2 in a gold medal game opportunity with the Soviet Union, but only came out in fourth place on goal difference.
Bauer was later coach and general manager for Canada in the 1968 Olympics, general manager in the 1965, 1966, 1967 and 1969 world championships. He managed the 1980 Canadian Olympic team as well.