History was made yesterday, 64 years in the making, on the day that Willie O’Ree, the first Black player in the NHL, skated in an 1958 NHL game for the Boston Bruins. Michelle Wu, the mayor of the city of Boston called it, “Willie O’Ree Day,” a fitting follow-up to Monday’s observation of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
The league and the Bruins organization honored O’Ree by retiring his jersey, No. 22, ahead of Tuesday night’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes. It was a momentous occasion for the 2018 Hall of Fame inductee and his family — daughter, Chandra, and wife, Deljeet — who joined the ceremony via video conference due to COVID-19 concerns.