'I think it's time': Campaign to induct NHL's first Asian player into Hall of Fame

Larry Kwong only played one shift in the NHL nearly 75 years ago. But supporters have launched a campaign to have him considered for induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Larry Kwong only played one shift in the NHL nearly 75 years ago. But supporters have launched a campaign to have him considered for induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

When Kwong laced up for the New York Rangers on March 13, 1948, he made history, becoming the first person of colour to play in an NHL game.

“Larry broke the colour barrier, if only for a minute. But that was such a monumental achievement given everything that was against him,” said Vernon, B.C., teacher Chad Soon, who first learned about Kwong’s story from his grandfather, and later met the man himself and brought him to his school to speak to students.

Kwong was born in Vernon, and the talented forward faced rampant discrimination against Asian Canadians as he tried to pursue a hockey career in the late 1940s.

At age 23, Kwong was eventually signed by the Rangers and assigned to the farm team.

“He leads the team in scoring in his second year, but has to watch as player after player with inferior stats with inferior ability gets the call up to the big team instead of him,” said Soon, who added Kwong drew huge crowds as a farm team player in New York.

Bowing to public pressure, the Rangers finally called up Kwong for a single NHL game in Montreal in 1948. He was benched for the first and second periods, and only played one shift late in the third before being sent back to the farm.