Bobby Orr squares off against Harry Agganis in the first round of Boston’s Biggest Sports Legend tournament.
Not many 12-year-olds attract professional hockey scouts, and not many 14-year-olds sign professional hockey contracts. But Bobby Orr wasn’t like most human beings. From a young age until the day he hung ‘em up, Orr was always a step ahead of the pack. Despite playing just nine full NHL seasons, Robert Gordon Orr is regarded as one of the greatest hockey players of all time. The subject of one of the sports world’s most recognizable photos, Orr popped the game-winning goal to seal the 1970 Stanley Cup Finals against the St. Louis Blues. It was the B’s first Cup in 29 years, and Orr took home a plethora of hardware, winning the Norris (best defenseman), Ross (top point scorer), Hart (regular-season MVP) and Conn Smythe (MVP Stanley Cup playoffs) Trophies that season. He went on to secure another Cup for Boston two seasons later and end his career with eight Norris Trophies, two Hart Trophies, two Ross Trophies and 915 points in 657 games played. The 1970-71 campaign turned out to be Orr’s most productive season as he scored 37 goals, had 102 assists and finished the year with a plus-124 rating — an NHL record that still stands to this day.
Harry Agganis, the “Golden Greek” from Lynn, Mass., was Lynn Classical High School’s three-sport phenom and was recruited by more than 75 colleges to play football. However, Agganis chose Boston University so that he could be close to his recently widowed mother. From there, his next decision was a tough one: What sport should he play professionally? At BU, Agganis excelled in both baseball and football despite serving 15 months in the Marine Corps after his sophomore year. Agganis played both offense and defense for the football team, and owned school records in passing yards, passing touchdowns, punting average and interceptions. On the diamond, he posted a .322 batting average as a junior and went on to play first base for the Boston Red Sox. However, the Golden Greek went from Red Sox star to local legend on June 27, 1955, when he died of a massive pulmonary embolism at the age of 26. Agganis Arena now sits as the center of BU’s student village.
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