Tim Higgins To Be Inducted Into Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame
Nepean native and longtime Barrhaven resident Tim Higgins will be inducted into the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame.
On September 27 at Lansdowne’s Horticulture Building, the Ottawa Sport Hall of Fame is inducting five new members to its local sports shrine – Carol Anne Chenard (soccer), Murray Costello (hockey), Tim Higgins (hockey), Earle Morris (curling) and Jill Perry (boxing).
Tim Higgins became a junior star with the hometown Ottawa 67’s. Then he went on to play parts of 11 seasons in the NHL. Maybe some of his most productive days in life came in his post-hockey career and the years he spent as an addiction counsellor. He took many of the hard lessons he learned during his battles with addiction and helped many overcome their demons.
Tim played Peewee hockey for the Ottawa Junior 67’s, one of Ontario’s top Peewee teams ever. The team played more than 100 games and never lost. Four members of that team went on to play in the NHL.
Junior hockey followed. Tim was an important player on some of the best junior teams Ottawa has ever seen. NHL scouts flocked to his games. In 1978 he was chosen tenth overall by the Chicago Black Hawks. That same year, at age 20, he made his NHL debut.
Tim Higgins played more than 700 games in the NHL and tallied more than 350 points. He was a solid, dependable two-way player. He remained in hockey for nearly two more decades as a scout and coach. For a time, he returned to the Ottawa 67’s as an assistant to the legendary Brian Kilrea.
Tim also spent many years as an addiction counsellor in Ottawa, where he returned after his hockey days ended. He became an important ally for many people, including athletes and former athletes who battled addiction. He remains proud of the unsung work he has done away from hockey.
He is also proud of becoming part of Ottawa’s Sport Hall of Fame and being able to share the moment with his three daughters and seven grandchildren. “To have this opportunity means the world to me,” he says. “I’m proud to be from Ottawa and proud to be representing the city in our hall of fame.”
Tickets are available for purchase now at: www.ottawasporthall.ca. Event tickets are $125 per person or $1,200 for a table of 10, while premium tables go for $2,000 and additional sponsorship opportunities are available. For more details, see www.OttawaSportHall.ca
Featured Image: Tim Higgins 1981-82 O-Pee-Chee rookie card.
