The Great One is a great Canadian who deserves our respect

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BY BOBBY ORR

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The recent Four Nations Face-Off in hockey was, by any standard, an unbelievable success for the game of hockey.

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The exposure it produced for our great game is a credit to all those individuals involved in its creation and implementation. Hats off to all the players who were so committed to their respective homelands and the game of hockey in general.

These were not mere exhibition games – these were games with great meaning. Congratulations one and all.

However, as a former player and someone raised in Canada, I need to express a level of disappointment on one specific aspect of the final between Canada and the USA. Once the match was concluded, I heard and read an unbelievable amount of criticism levelled against someone that I consider to be one of the greatest Canadians ever, namely, Wayne Gretzky.

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For the life of me, I cannot understand why the “haters” have decided to go after Wayne because he “didn’t wear a Canadian jersey” during his introduction at the final match. I, for one, thought that he looked very dignified while representing Canada with class and professionalism.

Remember, this is a man who wore the Maple Leaf on multiple occasions with pride. As both a player and administrator, he has brought nothing but glory to his homeland year after year, decade after decade.

How fickle can people be, when someone who has given so much time and effort to Canadian hockey is treated in such a way. Listen, we all have our personal beliefs as they pertain to things such as religion and politics. Wayne respects your right to such beliefs – why can’t you respect his?

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People have the right to express their opinions – I get it. But being someone who has been in the public arena I can tell you that before the bright lights, before the fame, we were all just people like you growing up in Canada.

Wayne is a guy from Brantford, Ont., who made good and has done nothing throughout his life but give aid and assistance to innumerable Canadians along the way.

Please, let’s take a time out. Extend a little grace, and a little respect for a good man and a great Canadian.

Wayne, thanks for all you do.

– Bobby Orr is a legendary NHL player from Parry Sound, Ont., the only defenceman to lead the league in scoring, which he did twice, a two-time Stanley Cup winner and member of the Hockey Hall of Fame who represented his country in the 1976 Canada Cup

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