Rick Eaton a hometown hockey star from Gananoque, ON has passed away at age 79. Eaton, who died in Brockville on January 9th, helped lead his Gananoque team to an OMHA Bantam B Championship in 1961.

In the Ontario Bantam semi-finals Gananoque beat a Parry Sound team that featured a young Pee Wee aged  Bobby Orr. In the OMHA finals against Goderich – teammate and Captain Doug Higgins scored four goals in the fifth and deciding game played at the Ted Reeve Arena in Toronto to capture Gananoque’s first OMHA title since 1944.

The Gananoque Amo’s Esso Bantam team received a hero’s welcome from the locals as they returned home in the early morning hours after the Saturday night win. The team gathered on the balcony of the Old Provincial Inn where they stood and addressed a large, cheering crowd with a siren blaring from a Gananoque fire truck.

It was during the Parry Sound semi-final series that Eaton and Higgins became part of hockey lore. Scouts and management of the Boston Bruins had come to Kingston to look at a couple of players from their minor pro farm team, the EPHL’s Kingston Frontenacs. With a night off on the Easter Weekend, the Bruins contingent that included GM Lynn Patrick along with Milt Schmidt and scouts Harold ‘Baldy’ Cotton and Wren Blair wanted to see Eaton, a defenceman, and Higgins – a high scoring forward – two rising stars in minor hockey. It was the second game of the Gananoque – Parry Sound OMHA series at the old Wellington Street Arena. Also in the crowd that night was a 27-year-old scout for the Montreal Canadiens by the name of Scotty Bowman.

Eaton and Higgins both had strong games, but the crowd’s attention turned to a smallish defenceman that wore number 2 for Parry Sound. Bobby Orr wearing an oversized sweater was two years younger and much smaller (112 pounds) than the other players on the ice. But he could control the game, and Orr scored the tying goal late in the third period to send it to overtime in the two game total goals series. Gananoque goaltender Glen Grue stopped Orr on a breakaway in OT, then Bobby Dickson – one of Gananoque’s big guns – scored the winner to send Gananoque on to the OMHA finals against Goderich.

After the game players from both teams gathered at the Boston Cafe and J.W.’Bill’ Fitsell from the Kingston Whig Standard snapped a photo of the youngsters enjoying their cherry Cokes – including Orr. Years later the Bruins star would sign a personalized copy of the photo to the veteran newspaper journalist and hockey historian. Fitsell said the Gan players applauded and stood when Orr entered the restaurant recognizing he was, “the best player on the ice,” he recalled to Whig Standard writer Patrick Kennedy in a 2002 story.

A few days after that game in Gananoque, Wren Blair visited the Orr family in Parry Sound and Orr would eventually sign with the Bruins. Meanwhile, Eaton and Higgins also signed pro contacts with Boston. Eaton had at least four NHL teams interested in his services, but the Bruins owned the NHL rights to players from Gananoque. Higgins initially signed with Montreal, but the league voided the deal because Boston owned his rights. Higgins negotiated a new deal with Boston that included the Bruins buying a new car for his parents. Neither Higgins or Eaton would ever play an NHL game and as we all know, Orr went to be one of the all-time greats.

“Even though it was Bobby Orr and everything. It has not always been the happiest of memories for me, hasn’t always been a good thing,” a candid Eaton told Kennedy in the 2002 Whig article, given how he and Higgins had always been tied to Orr’s story. However, last year in an interview with the National Post, Eaton reflected on that amazing run in ‘61 with positive memories, “Did I enjoy it while I was doing it? I loved every minute of it, they were great times while they lasted.”

Eaton briefly became teammates with Orr during his first season with the Oshawa Generals in 1962-63. Eaton played 25 games for the Generals collecting four assists. Eaton would play Junior B in London, Kingston, Chatham ON and later in Brockville. Eaton and his former Gananoque Bantam teammate Bobby Dickson would reunite in Kingston in 1968 – joining a Kingston Merchants team that had won two straight OHA Intermediate and Senior titles. The Ted Walton coached team got back to the Intermediate A final series in 1968-69 but lost the championship series to Port Colborne.

Eaton and Higgins are remembered as the players Boston scouts came to watch in Gananoque, which happened to be the night they spotted Bobby Orr. It was not always easy for them given Orr’s future success and the many media inquiries over the years from curious sports writers wanting to revisit the story. Both Rick Eaton and Doug Higgins were exceptionally talented players, signing pro contracts and making Gananoque proud. They were a big part of one of Gananoque’s great sports memories, winning an OMHA Bantam championship – and beating Bobby Orr’s Parry Sound team to do it.

Eaton spent most of his life in Gananoque and had a long career working at the Graphic Controls plant. In his later years Rick was known for running his sled dogs and was an avid photographer.

Survived by his wife Karen and daughters Jennifer and Shari, a private family memorial service will be held to celebrate the life of Rick Eaton.

Mark Potter is a longtime Kingston broadcaster and honoured member of the Kingston & District Sports Hall of Fame.