This took way too long.
I mean way, way too long.
Willie O’Ree overcame slurs, cheapshots, and a secret loss of vision in one eye to break the NHL’s color barrier on January 18, 1958. Sixty years later, he will finally be enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame, in the “Builders” category.
O’Ree’s Hall of Fame candidacy seemed to come to a head this season, as the Bruins celebrated the 60th anniversary of his groundbreaking moment, spurring a flurry of conversation (including a piece I wrote) as to why such an important figure had not been named to the Hall.