Bob Cole’s ability to set the stage and call some of hockey’s greatest moments brought him fans from all over the world. Now, those fans can make a piece of his legacy their own.
Some of Cole’s hockey mementos are up for auction at Bartlett Auctions in St. John’s until Tuesday.
“Like any family that loses a loved one, they have to go through the process of going through all their loved ones’ meaningful life collections. And, you know, it can be a big task if someone had a big life. And my dad had a really big life,” Cole’s daughter, Hilary, told CBC News Thursday.
“We knew that there was people that would appreciate them, would want to have them. Would want to have a piece of hockey history.”
Cole was a legend, broadcasting sports across the airwaves for five decades. He died in April 2024 at the age of 90.
His collection spans a wide range of significant sports items, including framed pictures from events Cole took part in or places he called games, Hilary Cole said, along with things like press passes, merchandise and more.
It also includes memorabilia from athletes, like photos with Doug Gilmour, Vincent Damphousse, and a pair of game-worn gloves from Wayne Gretzky.
Hilary Cole said it’s emotional to part with some of the items, but hopes sharing them can bring forward memories of her father with others.
“For me, these are things that were part of his home. And they had more meaning for me when they were in his home, and I was spending time with them,” she said.
“But I loved seeing him with his friends, cause that’s what hockey meant to him, ” she said. “There’s lovely pictures of him with, you know, maybe Jean Béliveau. Or a picture of him with another player, and those are the things that I know meant a lot to him.”
Bob Cole’s hockey legacy is unmatched. You can own a piece of it now
But the auction also includes pieces and passions a fan of Cole’s might not know about, like the books he read, movies he watched and even a skilsaw.
“Everybody got to hear how passionate he was about hockey, but he was that passionate telling a story about, I’m not exaggerating, a run-in with an actual mafia member,” Hilary Cole said with a laugh.
“He’s got all these mafia books cause he’s fascinated by that. He grew up in the ’30s and ’40s, so some of it is like time and place. He grew up during the war, he had an older brother who went to war. We heard stories about that, and so he’s got a lot of war books.”
Cole said her father might have felt weird about the interest in his memorabilia, but added the family is taking comfort in being able to share a part of him with others.
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