CORNER BROOK Ed O’Quinn quietly went about his business on the ice, but his contribution to senior hockey as a member of the Corner Brook Royals has created a stir.
O’Quinn, a Corner Brook native now making his home in Alberta, will be inducted into the Newfoundland and Labrador Hockey Hall of Fame in the player category. O’Quinn and former Corner Brook Royals forward Kirk Johnson of Buchans will both be inducted in the player category, while Dave Brazil of Bell Island and George Fardy will be inducted in the builder category and Dee Murphy of St. John’s will be honoured in the media category.
The inductees will share the spotlight at the Hockey Newfoundland and Labrador annual general meeting and awards gala June 11 at the Albatross Hotel in Gander.
Hall of Famer Frank (Danky) Dorrington was a teammate and good friend of O’Quinn’s. Dorrington was pleased to hear his buddy was finally recognized for his stellar career.
“It’s about God damn time. I thought he did a hell of a good job,” Dorrington said earlier this week from his home in New Glasgow, N.S. “He’s as good as some of them who got in there you know what I mean. Everybody sees people differently though don’t they?”
Dorrington remembers O’Quinn as a versatile player who could patrol the blue-line with the best of them and also could step up to play the wing when the coach needed him to do so.
“I thought he was a hell of a good defenceman. He played defence and forward. You could use him anywhere,” Dorrington said of O’Quinn’s value to the Royals during his career.
“He was in the game all the time. He played well. He played on the third line sometimes and as far as I am concerned the old hound dog did well.”
O’Quinn, affectionately known as Hound, put an impressive 21-year provincial hockey career together establishing himself as one of the finest players to perform for the Corner Brook Royals.
He was 17 in 1956 when he played with the Humber Hawks of the Corner Brook senior hockey league and was so impressive that he was selected to play for the Corner Brook Royals in provincial competition. He established himself as a very effective forward, but moved back to defence when the Royals required him to do so.
Playing on a line with Orin Carver and Clobie Collins, he was regarded as an effective forward when Corner Brook won the Herder Memorial Trophy during the 1961-62 season. He would play a major role during the remainder of the ’60s as Corner Brook emerged with championships in 1964, 1966 and 1968. His leadership was such that he was captain of the Royals and, for a period in 1972, was the club’s player-coach.
“I wish it had been years ago,” O’Quinn said of his induction from his home in Grande Prairie, where he has lived the past four years since uprooting from Corner Brook.
O’Quinn is creeping up in age and has battled a heart problem for the past 15 years, so he wasn’t sure if he was going to even be able to attend the induction ceremony. However, he has since changed his mind and will be there to receive his award with his common-law spouse Tryphena (Triff) Beck at his side.
“I was thinking ‘why go home and accept something and probably take a heart attack and die,” he said with a light chuckle.
Despite his health issue, the 71-year-old is proud to be inducted into a Hall full of great players, and he’s particularly pleased with the fact that he came from the small community of Codroy Valley and made a name for himself on the provincial senior hockey scene.z
He is looking forward to the gala awards night, but still has worries about holding up to the strain of travelling across the country.
“I still got blockages. Once you get it, I don’t think you get over it. But you got to do the best you can, I guess,” he said.