Mike Eruzione’s college hockey coach at BU, Jack Parker, is coming to town and there will be many, many Winthrop residents on hand next Wednesday, November 21, when the town pays tribute to our Olympic gold medalist by naming the hockey rink the Larry Larsen Rink at the Mike Eruzione Center. It’s a significant honor for Mike Eruzione who began participating in hockey as a youth at the rink and thus started the journey that would result in his becoming a captain of the 1976-77 BU hockey team, the captain of the 1980 U.S. hockey team, scoring the goal that beat the Soviet Union, and helping his team win a gold medal — which was later named by Sports Illustrated magazine as the greatest sports moment of the 20th century.
But despite being an international celebrity, Mike Eruzione  never has forgotten his roots in our community. His family’s Winthrop Charities organization has helped innumerable  causes in our town. Mike Eruzione is a true American sports hero who brought the entire country together with his leadership of that team and the way he conducted himself on and off the ice. Who can forget Mike, after the National Anthem was played at the gold medal ceremony, exhorting his teammates to join him on the medal platform. That moment wasn’t scripted — it was Mike just doing what he thought was right at the moment and it’s one we’ll never forget.
To Mike, his wife Donna, and their three children, Leighann, Michael, and Paul, Â we offer our congratulations on the Mike Eruzione Center honor and thank you for all that you have done to make our town a better place.
We understand the renovations at the rink look great and we look forward to seeing the many changes at the Larry Larsen Rink at the Mike Eruzione Center.