NHL
legend Eddie Shore left his stamp on the game of hockey.
Appropriately,
Canada Post issued a commemorative stamp in his honour last
January.
This
weekend, Shore - and his entire family- will again be recognized.
The
Cupar sports grounds are to be renamed Shore Recreational
Park on Saturday - during the Cupar Canucks/Cubs senior
hockey reunion. Cupar's senior hockey history dates back
to 1906.
"I
think it's absolutely fantastic that the town where the
Shore's settled and grew up honours them in such a way,"
says Eddie Shore Jr., who has travelled to southern Saskatchewan
from his home in Springfield, Mass.
"It's
not just for today or tomorrow or one year. It's fantastic.
When they honoured my father with a stamp, I thought that
was pretty big. This is right up there with that."
Event
organizer Kevin Bonish expects at least 250 people - including
29 members of the Shore family - to attend the reunion.
Cupar,
which is 50 kilometres north-east of Regina, has a population
of 625.
"This
has been quite a year," says Shore Jr., whose father
died in 1985 at age 82. I've been to Montreal for the stamp
unveiling. I went to the NHL all-star game in Denver. Now
the family is being honoured by having this recreational
ground named in its honour. Whew!
It's
has been a big year for us - for the Shores. I'm happy that
it's not only Eddie Shore, But all the Shores. Ed has had
some honours in his time but, with the Shore family being
honoured, it's just awesome."
Eddie
Shore Sr. was born in Fort Qu'Appelle on Nov. 25, 1902.
When Eddie was five, his father - T.J. Shore - acquired
some farm land in the Cupar area and moved the family to
the community.
He
was instrumental in financing the construction of Cupar's
first indoor rink, which opened in 1911.
At
that facility, Eddie and his older brother, Aubrey, honed
their hockey skills.
From
1919 to 1923, Eddie played intermediate C hockey in Melville.
He joined the Melville Millionaries for the 1923-24 season.
In
1924, Shore latched on with the Regina Capitals - then a
professional team in the old Western Canada Hockey League.
When the Capitals pulled out of the WCHL the following season,
Shore was acquired by the Pacific Coast Hockey League's
Edmonton Eskimos.
When
the Pacific Coast loop dispanded in 1926, Shore's contract
was purchased by the Boston Bruins - with whom he became
a Hall of Fame defenceman.
Shore's
association with the Bruins ended in 1939, a few months
after he purchased a minor-league team, the Springfield,
Indians. Shore operated that franchise until 1976.
After assuming control of the Indians, Shore told Bruins
boss Art Ross of his desire to play for Boston and Springfield.
"Art
Ross was not happy about that," Shore Jr. says. "He
traded Ed to the New York Americans (in December of 1939).
Red Dutton was the manager of the Americans. He and my father
were good friends.
"At
one time, Ed played 19 games in 23 days, between the Springfield
Indians and New York Americans. All the owners in the American
Hockey League wanted him to play in their building because
he drew great crowds. The NHL wanted him because he drew
people there, too.
"It's
like Mario Lemieux coming back. He put people in the seats.
Well, Eddie Shore was doing the same thing."
Shore
revolutionized the sport with his ability to carry the puck
and create offence as a defenceman.
He
won the Hart Trophy, which goes to the NHL's most valuable
player, on four occasions. He was a six-time first-team
all-star.
Shore
was also renowned for his toughness. At time, he was labelled
a vicious player. His son takes issue with that perception.
"I'll
tell you what he told me," Shore Jr. says. "He
said, 'When I play, I ask for no quarter and I give no quarter.
I'm not dirty until you are. When your'e dirty, I can be
dirter.'
"If
you had ever seen him play, that's the way he played. He
played hard. He gave bodychecks, no question, but that's
part of the game. He wasn't dirty to you unless you were
dirty to him."
Shore
remarkable career was recognized in 1947 when he entered
the Hockey Hall of Fame.
In
1970, he recieved the Lester Patrick Trophy for outstanding
service to hockey in the United States. Twenty years later,
the junior Shore visited Cupar when his late father was
inducted into the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame.
"We're
going to go back to the (Cupar Heritage Museum and the Saskatchewan
Sports Hall of Fame and see that again," Shore Jr.
says. "We're really excited about this."
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