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Plager Brothers Bronze Plaques
Circa 2006
Hockey Heritage North, Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Hockey Heritage North

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But at the other end of Kirkland Lake is another "shrine" to hockey - the arena at the Joe Mavrinac Community Complex. Also known as "the Joe", the Community Complex has also honoured those who have called Kirkland Lake home and gone on to professional hockey in the NHL.

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Exterior View of the Joe Mavrinac Community Complex
Circa 2010
Joe Mavrinac Community Complex, Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Hockey Heritage North Archives

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Jim Watson - Paintings on the Wall at the Joe Mavrinac Community Complex
5 January 2010
Hockey Heritage North, Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Jim Watson Interview
Hockey Heritage North Archives

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Jim Watson Painting
Circa 2005
Joe Mavrinac Community Complex, Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Joe Mavrinac Community Complex
Original artwork by Mark Didine

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Joe Mavrinac Community Complex Wall Paintings
Circa 2005
Joe Mavrinac Community Complex, Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Joe Mavrinac Community Complex
Original artwork by Mark Didine

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Joe Mavrinac Community Complex Wall Paintings
Circa 2005
Joe Mavrinac Community Complex, Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Joe Mavrinac Community Complex
Original artwork by Mark Didine

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Kirkland Lake artist Mark Didine created all of the Honoured Member paintings at the arena. The paintings are created using the likeness of the player, usually from a hockey card or photograph.

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Kirkland Lake has produced some of the finest hockey players to have ever skated, and has been called "the town that made the NHL famous" by Foster Hewitt, a CBC sports announcer. Although there are 42 NHL players who have called Kirkland Lake their hometown, but only a few of these players will be highlighted in vignettes in this chapter. To learn more about the individual players from Kirkland Lake, visit www.hockeyheritagenorth.ca

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Many players from Kirkland Lake had their first taste of competitive hockey at the grade school level, playing in the Playground Leagues and inter-school competition. Dick Duff was a talented skater in Kirkland Lake, and was a proficient scorer even at young age when he played for his school teams. Duff is seated in the first row, far right of the following image of the "Hub of the North" team.

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"Hub of the North" hockey team
Circa 1940's
Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Hockey Heritage North Archives

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To pursue both an education and to continue his hockey career, Dick moved to Toronto on his own at the age of 16, and attended his first year at St. Michael's College School in 1952-53. The school was known for its athletics program, including hockey, and he didn't let them down. After a season with the St. Mike's Buzzers he played for several years with the St. Mike's Majors, a junior team that benefited from his speed and scoring abilities.

The St. Mike's Majors were one of the Toronto Maple Leafs several junior squads, and Dick played his first full season with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1955-56. He was only 19 years old at the time. He stayed with the Leafs for nine seasons and secured two Stanley Cup wins with them before being traded to the New York Rangers in the 1963-64 season. He was a consistent scorer during his time with the Montreal Canadiens from 1964 to early 1970. In Montreal, Duff was part of a Stanley Cup winning team, for four years out of six.

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Brothers Dick and Les Duff
1952-1955
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Hockey Heritage North Archives

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He was sold to the Los Angeles Kings for a few seasons, then sent to the Buffalo Sabres, where he stayed for less than two years. After retiring as a player, he joined the Toronto Maple Leafs once again in 1979-80, this time as a scout and assistant coach. The following season he helped coach the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Of his many accomplishments, Dick Duff scored 651 points in his professional hockey career, and he played in seven NHL All-Star Games.