SPORTS

Locals to be inducted to RI Hockey HOF

FROM STAFF REPORTS
Posted 2/24/21

FROM STAFF REPORTS The R.I. Hockey Hall of Fame is pleased to announce the names of four local greats voted into its "Class of 2021" - legendary R.I. Reds trainer George Army, U.S. Olympian and two-time Brown All-American Bob Gaudreau, six-time AHL/NHL

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SPORTS

Locals to be inducted to RI Hockey HOF

Posted

FROM STAFF REPORTS The R.I. Hockey Hall of Fame is pleased to announce the names of four local greats voted into its “Class of 2021” - legendary R.I. Reds trainer George Army, U.S. Olympian and two-time Brown All-American Bob Gaudreau, six-time AHL/NHL champion Art Lesieur, and current New York Rangers coach David Quinn.

Hall of Fame chairman Vincent Cimini noted, “The careers and achievements of our newest class span a period covering 92 of the 128 years of Rhode Island's rich and illustrious hockey history. We look forward to paying tribute to them for the great honor they have brought to our state and our hockey community."

Formal Enshrinement Ceremonies for the “Class of 2021” will be held in August, together with the pandemic-delayed inductions of the “Class of 2020”. It is undetermined at this time if the event will be held in-person, staged virtually or safely pre-taped for broadcast. Please check www.RIHHOF.com for details as they become available.

GEORGE ARMY

Patriarch of one of RI’s most famous and accomplished hockey families, George served 35 years as the self-taught and revered trainer for the RI Reds. He famously learned how to stitch by cutting zig-zags in oranges and sewing them back together. Before joining the Reds, George was a talented Triple A baseball catcher and manager who barnstormed with baseball’s best, including Babe Ruth. Among the proteges he generously taught his craft to are Tom Woodcock and Pete Demers, both of whom have plaques in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

BOB GAUDREAU

This Providence native and Cranston resident is considered by many to be the greatest to ever have suited up for Brown University. He arrived from nearby Hope High School where he was a 3-time All-State defenseman. He would earn three All-Ivy nods, capture the Walter Brown Award as New England’s best U.S.-born college player, and twice be selected a NCAA All-American. In 1965, he led his team to the Final Four held at Meehan Auditorium. This father of former PC great and NHL star, Robbie Gaudreau, crowned his hockey career as a member of Team USA at the 1968 Olympic Games in Grenoble, France.

ART LESIEUR

Art lived his entire adult life in RI, mostly in Warwick. In 1929, he became the first U.S.-born player for the Montreal Canadiens to have his name engraved on the Stanley Cup. Over the next decade, Art captained the Reds to 5 league championships. Remarkably, over that period, he also coached Mount St. Charles to 5 RI state titles. During the 1938-39 season, Art negotiated a hat trick of duties playing for the Reds while also coaching both MSC and Brown. Mid-season in 1941, Art became the first U.S.-born professional hockey player to be drafted into the armed forces and served 3 years in Army combat.

DAVID QUINN

Raised in Cranston, David developed his considerable hockey skills playing in the Edgewood Youth Hockey Association. Following prep school, he became the 13th overall pick in the 1984 NHL draft but opted first to accept a scholarship to Boston University. He later played on two USA National Teams before two pro campaigns and the start of his coaching career as an assistant at Northeastern in 1995. After several years with USA Hockey’s development program and head coaching positions in the AHL and at BU, he was named head coach of the NY Rangers in 2018.

hockey, sports

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