ATHLETE LEGEND
Babcock, Larry
1940 – 2008
SPORT | Hockey
POSITION | Forward
YEAR OF INDUCTION | 2007
Larry Babcock was born and raised in Chatham and excelled at any sport that he undertook. However, it was in hockey that he had the greatest impact as he went from the CMHA, to Junior “B” and then “A”, to the University of Michigan, and finally to the University of Western Ontario. No matter where he played, he quickly became a team leader, which was evidenced by his appointment as captain of virtually all the teams he played with.
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
1955 to 1959
1955 – 1956 – Junior Hockey – signed with Montreal Canadiens to play Jr. “B” in New Hamburg – was made team captain – finished 3rd in team scoring
1956 – 1959 – member of first Peterborough Petes Jr. “A” team in history – with steady improvement, in its 3rd year of operation played in the Memorial Cup finals – in 3rd year, had 29 goals and 41 assists for 70 points and played in OHA all-star game – team ended second in league, won OHA Championship over St. Mikes, won Eastern Canadian Jr. “A” Championship over Hull Canadiens, and then lost to Winnipeg in the Memorial Cup Finals, where Larry was team MVP for the series
1959 to 1963
1959 – 1963 –University of Michigan – passed up his last year of junior and entered Michigan on scholarship – freshmen could not play so between semesters, returned to Peterborough, played 5 games scoring 5G and 5A – as sophomore, was 2nd in team scoring, and 7th in the league with 16G and 18A – as junior, was 3rd in team scoring 16G and 29A, while team finished 2nd with 24 wins which set a team record – lost to Michigan Tech in league playoffs, advanced to NCAA, finished 3rd – as senior, chosen as team captain, scored 7G and 16A, and was drafted by Philadelphia Flyers
1963 to 1966
1963 – 1966 – University of Western Ontario – entered UWO law school and played hockey but team was not member of Senior Intercollegiate Hockey League until following year
1964 – 1965 – team finished 3rd in league, lost to Montreal in semi-finals – Larry was team captain, 1st in team scoring, and team MVP for year
1965 – 1966 team finished 2nd – Larry was team captain, 2nd in team scoring, team MVP for year, 1st team all-star, and became 1st winner of Robert W. McCheseney Memorial Trophy for Loyalty and Sportsmanship
Accomplishments
Larry accomplished many firsts for Chathamites during his hockey career. He was first to sign with an NHL team, was first to play Junior “A” hockey, was, along with George Montague, first to play in a Memorial Cup, was, along with Al Hinnegan and Ron Coristine, first to play in an NCAA Final Four, and was, along with daughter, Courtney, first father and daughter combination to be inducted into Michigama which recognizes athletic and academic success of student athletes at the University of Michigan. In addition, with Larry’s induction it becomes the first time that two individuals from the same family have been inducted into the Chatham Sports Hall of Fame as Larry’s father, Ross, entered the Hall in 2004 as a Builder.
In 1963, Larry was elected into the University of Michigan Dekker Hockey Hall of Fame and in 2003 was inducted into the Chatham Collegiate Hall of Fame.
After finishing school, Larry returned to Chatham and established a very successful law practice and, with his wife, Dot, raised four children who also are very interested in and successful at sports.