In any other country the story of Red Kelly would be made into a movie.  At the same time he was a star NHL player with the Toronto Maple Leafs -- being a key player on two Stanley Cup winning teams -- Leonard Patrick Kelly also was elected twice to the House of Commons. In all, Red Kelly was on 8 Stanley Cup winning teams - 4 each with Detroit (as a defenseman) and Toronto (as a centre) -- and, in 2017, was named one of the top 100 NHL players of all time.  In his political career, he retired undefeated, having opted not to run for re-election following his two terms representing York West. I would suggest that if, for example, Lou Gehrig was sent to the U.S. Congress at the same time he was playing with the Yankees, Hollywood would have jumped all over such a great story for a blockbuster movie. But, we’re in Canada, so I guess, sadly, that will never happen. But I digress. So, it was on this date in 1963 that Mr. Kelly delivered his maiden address in the House. His opening line is worth recalling. “I’m not sure whether it is because I do not have on my skates,” he said, “but it feels much more slippery here than it does on the ice.” It's also worth noting that another member of the Maple Leafs, Howie Meeker, had also served as an MP while still taking to the ice at the Gardens. Red’s first Commons speech can be found in Hansard here.   caption id="attachment_559007" align="aligncenter" width="440" Red Kelly (#4), star NHLer and MP/caption Arthur Milnes is an accomplished public historian and award-winning journalist.  He was research assistant on The Rt. Hon. Brian Mulroney’s best-selling Memoirs and also served as a speechwriter to then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper and as a Fellow of the Queen’s Centre for the Study of Democracy under the leadership of Tom Axworthy.  A resident of Kingston, Ontario, Milnes serves as the in-house historian at the 175 year-old Frontenac Club Hotel.