Darryl Sly is not only a hockey player. He is an organizer and an ambassador of good will for the game he loves and plays so well.

Never hesitant to lend a helping hand to young players on the way up, Darryl know the value of good publicity and he has done much to publicize his native Collingwood.

Born in Collingwood, he came all the way up through the town=s minor hockey system and capped off his own minor hockey career by helping the Collingwood Clubs win the O.M.H.A. Juvenile “A” championship in 1956.

From juvenile he immediately jumped to the Major “A” Junior League in 1957 under the guidance of Father Dave Bauer. He developed into one of the top junior defensemen in the nation as a member of St. Michael’s college team.

From St. Mike’s he went to the Kitchener-Waterloo Flying Dutchmen in the Senior “A” loop.  As a member of the Flying Dutchmen, he represented Canada in the 1960 Winter Olympics at Squaw Valley. That was the year that Canada lost to the United States and they had to be content with a Silver Medal.

International hockey seemed to be in his blood and in 1961 he was an outstanding star on another Canadian National team. The Trail Smoke Eaters won the World Hockey championship over a powerful Russian club. Incidentally, that was the last time a Canadian team won a World Amateur hockey tournament.

Darryl was on a red hot winning streak because he came back from the World tournament and helped the Galt Terriers win the Allan Cup that very same year.

After turning pro with the Toronto Maple Leaf organization, Darryl kept hoarding the silverware with Rochester in the American League, winning three consecutive Calder Cups. He moved out to Vancouver when the Rochester club’s franchise was transferred to the wear coast city and once again the silverware rolled his way.  Vancouver won the Western League title and the Lester Patrick Trophy.

Playing on four championship teams in five years has got to be a record.

Darryl was then drafted to the Minnesota North Stars in the N.H.L. and the following season he was back with another expansion club-the Vancouver Canucks.

A year later he decided to look to the future with his family and a business career but kept his hand in hockey by retrieving his amateur status.

Here was a hockey player who looked beyond hockey while he was still playing the game. Already a college graduate, he picked up a Bachelor of Arts degree and carried on with a successful teaching career.

Like Bern Brophy, Roy Burmister, Jack Portland and Eddie Bush, all members of Collingwood’s Sports Hall of Fame, Darryl Sly came back to the old home town to finish his hockey career as a player and coach.

Darryl hooked up as a player-coach with the Barrie Flyers in 1971 and in the next seven years led the Flyers to the Allan Cup finals four times. They won the Allan Cup after a great series with Spokane in 1974.

He came back to Collingwood as a player-coach. He led the Shipbuilders to the O.H.A. Intermediate Championship in 1983.