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 Eddie Shore - West Springfield, MA Posted by:  neoc1
N 42° 05.501 W 072° 37.126
18T E 696930 N 4662699
A memorial plaque honoring hockey great Eddie Shore is located on the wall near the entrance to the Eastern States Exposition Coliseum in West Springfield, MA
Waymark Code: WMF6FW
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 08/31/2012
Views: 3
Eddie Shore was one of the greatest hockey players ever to play the game. After he retired from the National Hockey League he dedicated his life to advancing the sport of hockey. He owned and coached the Springfield Indians minor league franchise, organized amateur hockey leagues, and taught youngsters how to play the game. A laser etched aluminum plaque shows two pictures of Eddie Shore. One as a player with the Boston Bruins and the other instructing youngsters. It also contains a detailed biography of this hockey legend.
EDDIE SHORE
1902 - 1985
EDDIE SHORE WAS BORN IN CANADA , WHERE HE LEARNED TO SKATE AND PLAY HOCKEY
AT A YOUNG AGE. IN 14 SEASONS AS A SKILLFUL DEFENSEMAN WITH THE BOSTON BRUINS,
HE ESTABLISHED HIMSELF AS ONE OF THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE'S ALL-TIME GREAT
PLAYERS. HE BECAME KNOWN AS "MR. HOCKEY" BECAUSE OF HIS CONTIBUTIONS TO THE GAME
AS PLAYER, COACH, MANAGER, OWNER, BENEFACTOR AND TEACHER FOR SEVEN DECADES
HE IS REMEMBERED IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS AS THE SAVIOR OF HOCKEY, WHEN IN
1939 HE TOOK OVER THE BANKRUPT SPRINGFIELD FRANCHISE OF THE AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE,
WHOSE HOME AT THAT TIME WAS THE EASTERN STATES EXPOSITION COLISEUM. THROUGH HIS
EFFORTS, HE TURNED THE FRANCHISE INTO ONE OF THE GREATEST MINOR LEAGUE OPERATIONS IN
THE COUNTRY, AND THE COLISEUM INTO A PLACE FOR AREA YOUNGSTERS TO LEARN THE SPORT.
HE LED THE SPRINGFIELD INDIANS TO AN UNPRESEDENTED THREE CONSECUTIVE
AHL CHAMPIONSHIPS IN WHAT IS KNOWN AS THE GOLDEN AGE OF HOCKEY,
1959 - 1962. MANY OF HIS PLAYERS MOVED ON TO BECOME NHL PLAYERS,
COACHES AND GENERAL MANAGERS.
THE GREATER SPRINGFIELD JUNIOR AMATEUR HOCKEY LEAGUE, WHICH EDDIE SHORE
OPERATED FREE OF CHARGE FOR BOYS IN THE 10-16 AGE GROUP, WAS A DREAM COME
TRUE FOR ASPIRING YOUNG PLAYERS. THE SUPERIOR TRAINING THEY RECEIVED LED MANY OF
THEM TO COLLEGE WITH HOCKEY SCHOLARSHIPS. EDDIE ALSO ORGANIZED FREE SKATING SESSIONS
AT THE COLISEUM FOR BOYS AND GIRLS, TEACHING THEM THE TECHNIQUES OF PROPER SKATING.
AS A PERENNIAL ALL-STAR AND FOUR-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER, HE WAS INDUCTED INTO
THE NHL HALL OF GAME IN 1947. HE WAS GIVEN THE LESTER PATRICK AWARD IN 1970 FOR
HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO HOCKEY IN THE UNITED STATES. IN 1996, HE WAS INDUCTED INTO
THE SPRINGFIELD HOCKEY HALL OF FAME DURING ITS FIRST ENSHRINEMENT.
THIS IS ALSO A MEMORIAL TO THE YOUNGSTERS WHO WORKED AT THE
EASTERN STATES EXPOSITION COLISEUM IN EXCHANGE FOR ICE TIME AND INSTRUCTION
FROM EDDIE. THEY ARE AFFECTIONATELY REMEMBERED AS THE "RINK RATS".
EDDIE SHORE'S LEGACY TO HOCKEY LIVES ON AND HIS SPIRIT WILL
ALWAYS BE PRESENT IN THE COLISEUM.
DEDICATED NOVEMBER 3, 2004
Website with more information on either the memorial or the person(s) it is dedicated to: [Web Link]
Location: Eastern States Exposition Coliseum
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