The Boston Traveler

Tonight at 8pm EST, 72-year-old ice hockey legend Willie O’Ree will make a long-anticipated guest-star appearance on the critically acclaimed television comedy Everybody Hates Chris.

Narrated by Chris Rock, the series is based on the comedian’s experiences growing up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant community located in Brooklyn, New York. The highly publicized segment featuring O’Ree was filmed last August, and eager hockey fans in-the-know have been waiting to see it since last fall.

O’Ree, a Canadian of African ancestry from New Brunswick, is often called the Jackie Robinson of ice hockey for his accomplishment making history when he broke the color barrier in the National Hockey League in 1958. His NHL debut was with the Bay State’s very own Boston Bruins on January 18 of that year, at which time he played the position of winger in a game against the Montreal Canadiens.

O’Ree’s forthcoming television gig is on the sitcom’s episode named “Everybody Hates Gretzky.” The teenage title character Chris (Tyler James Williams) skips school to accompany his younger brother Drew (Tequan Richmond), who’s determined to go to Long Island to track down his idol Wayne Gretzky at an Edmonton Oilers game.

On the way, the two siblings get lost and ask O’Ree’s well-dressed character for directions. He obliges, giving them not only instructions on how to complete their trip, but a few pertinent details about ice hockey history. Fellow black Canadian and New Jersey Devils goaltender Kevin Weekes also has a speaking part in the same scene.

Viewers can catch this must-see episode of an excellent family comedy series on The CW television network. In addition to watching faithfully since its premiere three seasons ago, I’ve seen the segment in question, and I guarantee fans of the players and the show in general will be pleased. Even if you’ve never experienced Everybody Hates Chris before, there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy the episode, too.

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