Gregory Campbell, Boston Bruin and Rye Ranger
The London Free Press in Ontario, Canada, had an interesting write-up on Gregory Campbell, the Stanley Cup winning Boston Bruins forward and a former Rye resident. In fact, Campbell played with the Rye Rangers as a Squirt A and Pee Wee A from 1995-1997:
"…On Saturday, Gregory Campbell, the diligent Boston Bruins forward, will appear with the Stanley Cup at the Tillsonburg Community Centre, where his grandfather Jack was arena manager and the second, newer pad is named for his dad Colin, NHL director of hockey operations and former New York Rangers assistant coach who brought the trophy home 17 years ago.
“I believe winning the Stanley Cup was cleansing in a way for Gregory,” said Colin, who recently surrendered his controversial portfolio as the NHL’s disciplinarian. “There’s a perception that he got to where he is because of who I am and that’s the biggest crock of you-know-what…
Colin grew up in hockey-crazy Tillsonburg. He skated on frozen Lake Lisgar and learned the game from his dad, who played for the famous local Pan-Dried team and later coached. Everyone in town knew Jack…
For Gregory, the problem was finding the right level of competition. The family moved a lot because of Colin’s work in the game. “We were living in Rye, N.Y., (where the Rangers practise) and he became the youngest to play in a state high school league,” Colin said. “Gregory was 12 going up against 18-year-olds. His speed was fine but the size was a bit of an issue.""
