Harvey Roy remembered for his dedication to bringing junior hockey to Kamloops
KAMLOOPS — If it wasn’t for Harvey Roy, there may be no major junior hockey in Kamloops.
Roy, who passed away unexpectedly on Friday in Moose Jaw due to complications from diabetes, first established the Kamloops Chiefs in 1973 to begin the city’s connection with the Western Hockey League.
“Harvey was one of the biggest catalysts in helping the Kamloops Chiefs, the Kamloops Blazers of the old, become an established franchise,” said Blazers COO Don Moores, who played under Roy with the Kamloops Chiefs from 1974-76. “He started off as a coach. He had originally come from being a scout with the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1970s when they were the ‘Broad Street Bullies.’”
After the Chiefs moved to Seattle in 1977, Roy worked to bring the New Westminster Bruins to Kamloops where the franchise became the Junior Oilers in 1981. Roy served as the team’s first general manager.