Dick Tingley

Campbellton's Dick Tingley developed into one of the best hockey players ever to skate at Charlottetown's St. Dunstan's University, thanks to skill, size and a deft touch.

Dick played Junior Varsity basketball and football, but it was on the ice that Dick truly excelled. He first played hockey on PEI in 1958 with his home team, the New Brunswick Champion Campbellton Juvenile Tigers. He decided to come to Prince Edward Island for high school, so in grade 11 he played for the PEI Juvenile Champion Saint Dunstan’s High School Saints where he was leading scorer. In grade 12, Coach Frank Ledwell invited him to play for the Varsity Saints in the Island Senior League. He went on to play for SDU for four more years, under coach Jack Kane, where he continued his leading scorer tradition.

In 1962, the Maritime University League was formed, and in the 1962-63 season, Dick racked up 38 points in only 11 games. He hat-tricked in many games, including some 8- and 9-point games. He was named league scoring champion as well as a member of the All-Star team. In his final year he was Captain of the Saints, which ended the season in first place, tied with the UNB Red Devils.

After earning his BA, Dick went on to graduate from the University of New Brunswick Law School in 1967, and was appointed Queen’s Council in 1984. In 1995, Dick received Rotary’s Paul Harris Award. In 2001 he was inducted into the Campbellton Sports Hall of Fame in recognition of his four decades of involvement in sport in his hometown. 

In 1972 he witnessed Paul Henderson’s historic goal when he and his wife joined about 3,000 other Canadians for the ’72 Summit Series in Moscow. The goal was a defining moment for Canadians; for Dick it was a "life-changing experience."

 Now, five decades later, he credits something else for his on-ice success - the Montreal Canadiens. Specifically, a set of hockey gear shipped to the Island from the Canadiens dressing room that ultimately landed in his possession.

In this, the 45th anniversary year of the founding of the Maritime University League, of which Dick was the first scoring champion, it seems more than fitting that Dick Tingley be named to the UPEI Sport Hall of Fame.