Father David Bauer
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- For other men with the same name, see David Bauer
Father David William Bauer, OC, CSB, (November 2, 1924 – November 9, 1988), a native of the Kitchener-Waterloo area of Ontario, was a professional ice hockey player, builder, and hockey pioneer.
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[edit] Hockey career
Bauer was the younger brother of hockey player Bobby Bauer. A noted sportsman in his own right, Bauer turned down an offer to play for the Boston Bruins Olympic farm team at the age of 16, so that he could attend St. Michael's College School in Toronto, where he played for their team from 1941 to 1943, and later the University of Toronto. In 1943 though, Bauer took up an offer from the Oshawa Generals and played with them as a Left-Wing, but left the team in 1944, after helping them win the Memorial Cup, because he wanted to become a Basilian priest.
[edit] Coaching and team building
In 1953 after his ordination as a priest, Bauer returned to St. Michael's College as a teacher and became coach of the school's junior team. During the 1960s he helped lead the team to a Memorial Cup, and helped introduce such future hockey stars as Dave Keon and Frank Mahovlich.
In 1962, Bauer took a position at the St. Mark's College and the University of British Columbia, where he came up with the idea to establish a national team of top amateurs from across Canada. The idea was presented to the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) and by the end of 1962, Bauer's idea was accepted. Bauer made up his team of several top UBC students including Brian Conacher, Rod Sieling, and Marshall Johnston, and in 1964 they participated in the Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria. The team put up a good fight but only came out in fourth place on goal difference.
Bauer later was also general manager for Canada in the 1968 Olympics, general manager in 1965, 1966, 1967, and the 1969 world championships.
[edit] Awards and legacy
Among Bauer's many awards and honours are, winning the Olympic bronze in 1968 as General Manager, World Championship bronze in 1966 and 1967 as general manager, the Memorial Cup in 1944 as a player and in 1961 as a trainer, being elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame as a Builder in 1989, and the IIHF Hall of Fame in 1997, both posthumously. Bauer was also named Vice-President of Hockey Canada in 1981, Chairman of Canada's Olympic program also in 1981, named to the Order of Canada in 1967.
Father David Bauer Olympic Arena in Calgary, Alberta, is named for him, as is the roadway Father David Bauer Drive in Waterloo, Ontario. A bursary from St. Mark's College (affiliated with the University of British Columbia) was also named for him in 1987.
Bauer died in November 1988, at the age of 64 in Goderich, Ontario. He was buried in his family plot in Mount Hope Cemetery in Kitchener, Ontario.
[edit] External links
Categories: 1924 births | 1988 deaths | Toronto St. Michael's Majors alumni | Canadian ice hockey forwards | Canadian Roman Catholic priests | Canadians of German descent | Canada's Sports Hall of Fame | Hockey Hall of Fame | Officers of the Order of Canada | Ice hockey personnel from Ontario | People from Waterloo Region, Ontario
