READY ORR NOT

DEREK VAN DIEST
EDMONTON SUN

EDMONTON - It's not easy being an Orr, especially if your first name is not Bobby.

Doug Orr does not have the smooth skating stride of his famous uncle. Few do.

He'll never play in the National Hockey League.

He doesn't even play the same position.

But the fifth-year winger with the McGill Redmen did manage to carve out a very good university career.

\"He brings great leadership and great energy to our team,\" said Redmen head coach Martin Raymond. \"He's a fifth-year guy and he's put his heart and soul into our program.\"

Yesterday, Orr, 24, was back in the Redmen lineup for the first time in two months since suffering a concussion.

The Redmen defeated the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks 4-3 in overtime, to advance to within a win of the CIS-Telus University Cup final. Shawn Shewchuk scored at the 3:40 mark of the second overtime to give the Redmen the victory.

\"I tried to come back a couple times during the time off,\" said Orr. \"When we clinched a berth into this tournament the doctors got me on the ice the next day. I was a little worried at first, but I worked hard the last two weeks and I was surprised how good I felt.\"

Tomorrow, the five-foot-10, 180 pound Orr could play his final university hockey game when the Redmen face the host University of Alberta Golden Bears (4 p.m.) at Clare Drake Arena.

The end appeared to be close last night, but the Redmen were able to battle back from 3-1 down to send the game into overtime.

\"You try not to think about that too much,\" he said. \"This was a pretty emotional game for me, but I try not to think about the past or worry about the future, I just want to live in the moment.\"

Only Pierre-Antoine Paquet has played more games for this year's edition of the Redmen than Orr, an Industrial Relations student.

In five years with the Redmen, Orr played in 147 games, scoring 47 goals and adding 72 assists.

Prior to going to university, Orr played Junior A hockey in Ontario.

The native of Newmarket, Ont., takes great pride in his famous uncle.

\"It's definitely an honour,\" he said. \"Because he's my uncle, I don't think about it very much, but when I see him on a commercial on TV, it's an honour. He was a great hockey player, he's a great spokesman for the game and a great person.\"

This year Orr was third in team scoring during the regular season with nine goals and 12 assists in 16 games. Overall, including non-conference games, Orr netted 15 goals and 17 assists in 24 games.

\"It wasn't easy for Doug tonight because he had been off for two months, he didn't have his edge,\" Raymond said. \"I felt for him, because it wasn't easy, but he did a good job for having two months off. Getting a lot of scoring chances, he must be doing something right.\"

(Reprinted with permission from the Edmonton Sun.)