Jimmy Anderson grew up in Ontario, and thought he knew how to skate.
That was before he met Eddie Shore.
"If you played for Eddie, you skated his way. Knees bent, keeping your balance. That was his way - the only way," Anderson would say, smiling as he remembered his years in the company of the long-time owner of the Springfield Indians American Hockey League franchise.
For Anderson, those precious years stamped him as a local sports legend. After "learning to skate," he went on to make Springfield pro hockey history as the all-time leader in games played (943), goals (426) and points (821).
Altogether, he played 16 seasons in the AHL – 14 of them with Springfield clubs.
Anderson, a beloved figure to Connecticut Valley hockey fans since his Rookie-of-the-Year debut in 1954-55, died Sunday morning at 82. At the time of his death, he was residing in Agawam, his "hometown" since his playing days.
His passing stirs memories of Saturday nights at the old Eastern States Coliseum in the early 1960s, where Anderson and his teammates thrilled crowds with three straight Calder Cups. No franchise before or since has had a "three-peat."
How good were those teams? Well, five Springfield players from that era have been elected to the AHL Hall of Fame – Anderson, Harry Pidhirny, Marcel Paille, Noel Price and Bill Sweeney. In there with them are Shore and long-time AHL president Jack Butterfield, who served as general manager of those Springfield clubs.
The Indians of 1960-61 are generally regarded as the best hockey team this region has ever seen. In a season when they won 49 games, swept the Calder Cup playoffs and scored a franchise-record 344 goals, Anderson was right in the middle of it. His contribution? His best season – 43 goals to lead the league.
Anderson is a double Hall of Famer. He was elected to the Springfield Hockey Hall of Fame when it began in the early 1990s, and to the AHL Hall in 2009.
"And wouldn't you know," said his son Bill, "when he made his AHL Hall of Fame acceptance speech, all he talked about was Eddie Shore. He had so much respect for the man."
As for the skating, Anderson became a teacher in his own right. In his golden years, he would spend two days a week at Amelia Park rink in Westfield, teaching little kids how to skate.
"Those sessions at Amelia Park were so special to him," his son said. "He did that right up until last October."
Anderson came to the Indians at the age of 22. He made an immediate impact, thrilling fans with a 39-goal season. That led to the Red Garrett Trophy as Rookie of the Year.
He went on to have six more seasons with 30-plus goals. At 34, he scored 40 – for the third time.
At 37, Anderson got his one shot at the National Hockey League, when he played seven games with the Los Angeles Kings.
"He always said he was 'the little one' on those Springfield teams – 5-foot-10 and 165 pounds – but he said speed and peripheral vision helped him. And he always talked about the importance of stickhandling, keeping control of the puck," his son said.
After his career, Anderson coached the expansion Washington Capitals for one season. He also coached the Indians on two separate occasions before settling into a 19-year career as a scout for the L.A. Kings.
As proud as he was of his Springfield years, he also took great pride in working for the Kings. At those Amelia Park skating sessions, he always wore a Kings cap.
That was Jimmy Anderson, a dazzling rookie who came this way 59 years ago – and stayed for a lifetime.
Garry Brown can be reached at geeman1918@yahoo.com