Darren Colbourne – Athlete

Inducted 2022

Darren Colbourne has succeeded as both a hockey and baseball athlete since he began playing minor baseball and hockey in Corner Brook in 1972. Darren has displayed excellence and leadership at every level of his sports career while playing locally, provincially, nationally, internationally, and professionally. His exploits on and off the baseball fields and hockey rinks on the west coast of the island led to a life filled with awards and individual achievements. Playing baseball, he appeared in more than 20 National Junior and Senior Championships with the Corner Brook Barons and St. John’s Caps, won 10 Provincial Championships, 2 Atlantic Junior Championships, and 2 Atlantic Senior Championships, along with winning a Bronze Medal at the 1992 Senior Men’s Championships in Windsor, Ontario. His hard work led him to be selected as the Flag Bearer for the 1989 Canada Summer Games in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan at the age of 21.

He had the unique opportunity to pursue hockey and baseball for collegiate endeavours in 1984, choosing to follow his dreams of playing hockey. He spent 5 years in the Ontario Hockey League playing with both the Oshawa Generals, and the Cornwall Royals. Known for his gift to shoot and score, he was fortunate enough to score 150 goals and added almost 130 assists which resulted in being drafted by the Detroit Red Wings in 1988. He had a decorated career in the ECHL, playing 421 games over seven seasons in the League and ranks fifth in League history with 323 goals. He was also named ECHL Rookie of the Year and earned a spot on the All-ECHL First Team in 1991-92. He was one of only three players in ECHL history to have three 50 plus goal season which led him to be inducted into the ECHL’s Hall of Fame in 2015.

He also played Inline Roller Hockey, earning 3 world hockey championships which include a Roller Hockey International title in 1995 and a Major League Roller Hockey World title in 1998, and a International Ice Hockey Federation World title for Canada in 1998. Retiring in 1999 from his professional career, Darren returned to provincial hockey in 2000 to play for the Corner Brook Royals. He played a pivotal role in four league championship achievements and the 2002 Herder Memorial Championship. After he retired from playing in 2009, he went on to coach the 2011 Clarenville Caribous to an Allan Cup title. His contributions to the hockey community were recognized when his jersey number, 25, was retired by the Corner Brook Royals.