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.

One of the most colourful hockey players in the history of the town.

Tom played on  Collingwood’s second Ontario Hockey Association’s team for ten years around the
turn of the century.  He was a member of the 1907 Intermediate Ontario
finalists.  He played professional hockey with Portage La Prairie and
Minneapolis.  He was also a star lacrosse player.

A Sports Hall of Fame in Collingwood would be vacant without the name of Reg Noble.

Of all the Collingwood born hockey players, the name of “Noble” stands out like a sore thumb because it was Reg who paved the way for the others.

A member of Canada’s National Hockey Hall of Fame, Noble turned pro with the old Toronto Arenas in 1916 but the team disbanded half-way through the season and Reg was snapped up by Montreal.

The Canadians won the Stanley Cup in 1918 that year and Reg was back in Toronto in 1917. Toronto won the Stanley Cup in 1918 and Noble scored 28 goals in twenty-two games schedule. He finished third in the scoring race behind Cy Denneny and Joe Malone. That was the year Joe Malone set the league on fire with 44 goals in 22 games. The Toronto team took the name of St. Patrick’s and in 1922 that team won the Stanley Cup with Noble and the late Harry Cameron, another Hall of Famer, setting pace for the St Pat’s.

He went to the Montreal Maroons in 1924 and helped that team win the Stanley Cup
in 1926. Noble finished his great hockey career with Detroit after eighteen years in the N.H.L. He died in June 19, 1962.

Frank Cook was the greatest goalkeeper of his time stated Bill Hewitt, secretary of the O.H.A. for 60 years, when Frank died on June 6th, 1931, in his forty-second year.

Born in Midland in 1888, he was a member of the Midland Junior O.H.A. champions in 1907, lured to Collingwood in 1909 to lead the Collingwood Shipbuilders to their first Intermediate championship in 1909-10 against London. Three years later, Frank backstopped Collingwood to another Championship in 1913 followed by 3 consecutive titles in 1918, 1919 & 1920. In total, Frank played on six O.H.A. Intermediate title winning teams between Midland and Collingwood.

Near the close of the 1919 season, Cook and Rabbi Fryer, were both offered pro contracts with Montreal Canadians.

“It may be your last chances to make the big time” said Darcy Bell, manager of the Collingwood team.

“We can’t leave Collingwood with the team in the finals” said Cook and the Rabbi agreed.

After retiring in 1924, Frank rose from his sick bed to backstop the Collingwood Oddfellows win the 1931 Senior Town League title. The opposition scored three goals off him in seven play-off games.

It was, perhaps, a sentimental gesture, but it stuck in the hearts of Collingwood fans forever. From that day, the names of Cook and Fryer have been spoken in reverence.

Lou Marsh thought he was born twenty years too soon and said. “Had he chose to turn pro he would have been rated as one of the best N.H.L.”

As it was, Frank Cook dominated the amateur hockey scene for seventeen years from 1907 to 1924.

Less than 3 months following Frank’s return to the ice in 1931, the town was collectively shocked to learn of Frank Cook sudden passing, truly Collingwood’s greatest goalie and one of the town’s most respected citizens.

Randy Osburn was born in Collingwood, played all his minor hockey in Collingwood under such competent coaches as Dennis Robinson, Harvey Pearen and the late Merv Smith.

When he as ready to move up in t faster company in 1969, he was picked up by another Collingwood coach, Eddie Bush, who sent him to the Hamilton Mountain Junior B club. Eddie was coaching the Memorial Cup winning Hamilton Red Wings at the time.

Randy verified Eddie’s assessment of his ability by winning the scoring title in the Junior “B” League. The team lost out in the Ontario finals to the Dixie Bee Hives.

In 1970, he went up to the Hamilton “A” club but was traded the London Knights half way through the season. In 1971, he had a very good season with the Knights and the line of Reg Thomas, Dennis Ververgard and Osburn finished second in the scoring department, just 3 pints behind three future NHL stars named Shutt, Gardner and Harris of the Toronto Marlboros. Osburn scored forty goals and sixty assists for an even 100 points and the All-Star team.

The following year he was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs and after a full season was sent to Oklahoma City in the Central Pro League.

He won the goal scoring title for the league and was again picked on the first All-Star team. Dallas won over Oklahoma City in the league finals.

In 1974, the Leafs traded him for Bill Flett to the Philadelphia Flyers, then the Stanley Cup Champions.  He played with the Flyers for over half a season and was then assigned to the Philadelphia Firebirds of the American Hockey League. A severe neck injury ended his playing career in 1978.

Born in 1934, this hockey player got his start with the Collingwood Minor Hockey Association.

He played with the Collingwood Junior C Club, before playing with the Junior ‘A’ – Guelph Biltmores. He played professional hockey in several cities, including New
Haven, Three Rivers Knoxville and Philadelphia in the Eastern Hockey League (EHL). His career in the EHL ended following the 1968-69 season as a player-coach with the Syracuse Blazers.

He moved to Wallingford, Connecticut where he coached a high school hockey team.

Born in Collingwood on July 29, 1929, Cal is a lifelong citizen of our community. A graduate of Victoria Public School and Collingwood Collegiate, Cal and his wife Lenora have five children – Wendy, Patricia, David, William and Carole.

Cal’s hockey career spanned 5 decades as a player and coach. In 1944-45, Cal began his playing career in the Town League as a South End Dynamiter ascending to the Collingwood Juveniles (1947), Collingwood Junior B Sailors (1948 & 49), Collingwood Intermediate A (1949-54 & 1955-56). He played with the Aylmer Intermediates in 1954-55 and returned to play with the Collingwood Senior B team in 1964-65. His competitive career ended in 1966 with the Senior B – Midland Flyers.

During his playing years, Cal won the Intermediate A Championships in 1951 and 1952 and OHA Senior B Georgian Bay Group Champions in 1965.

Immediately following his playing days, Cal coached the Stayner Lions to the OHA Intermediate D Championship. He also managed the Senior A – Collingwood Kings from 1967-69 and Collingwood Intermediate A team from 1972-74.

Cal is recognized for his hockey career, becoming a worthy member of the Collingwood Sports Hall of Fame on June 12, 1998 in the Players’ category.