Briggs Orr was born in Denver and lived in the Lowry neighborhood before his family moved to California.

After progressing up the youth hockey ranks in Colorado and California, Orr made the jump to junior hockey with the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen. He has since played for four teams in the NAHL – Minot Minotauros, St. Cloud Norsemen, Maine Nordiques and Aberdeen Wings.

This season in Aberdeen, Orr is serving as an alternate captain in his age-out campaign.

“I started the (2024-25) season playing for the Maine Nordiques and was traded in January shortly after our Christmas break,” said Orr. “Things just weren’t working out like I had planned there and when Scott Langer, the head coach and GM in Aberdeen, saw I was available to trade, he picked me up immediately.

“The NAHL was appealing because it had a long record of consistent advancement for players to the next level. When I was released from the WHL, I had a few options, but I was most drawn towards the NAHL because of the prospect of playing NCAA Division I hockey. The league has proven itself to be one of the top leagues in North America and I found it hard to choose any other place.”

Orr was originally drafted by the Hitmen in the second round (34th overall) of the 2020 WHL U.S. Prospects Draft.

Five years later, Orr is embracing every moment of the last few months of his junior hockey career.

“It is pretty tough to accept it’s my final season of juniors,” Orr said. “I have gotten so used to going home for the summers and looking forward to the upcoming year and getting to play hockey every single day. It has been such an unbelievable opportunity to get to play hockey as this level as long as I have. Saying goodbye to it will be really tough.

“Junior hockey has taught me a lot. While most kids in their junior year are at home going to school, I was in a different country playing hockey in front of thousands of people. Being exposed to new environments and situations that young taught me a lot of independence and self-reliance. I had plenty of hard teaching moments throughout my career. Being cut and traded were hard moments to accept, but I found myself gaining more motivation each time. I think the most important lesson I’ve learned is how to carry yourself as a man and how to be respectful and professional outside of hockey. I’ve had the pleasure to be coached and taught by some amazing people who have shaped my character as I move onto the next stage in my life.”

Looking back, Orr, who now resides in El Dorado Hills, Calif., said hockey has been a part of his life as long as he can remember.

“I started playing hockey because of my dad,” said Orr. “He was a huge hockey fan but had never really played. When I would cry as a baby, my parents would try and turn on cartoons or any other show to see if it would calm me down, but it never worked. They realized that whenever a hockey game was playing on the TV, I was completely locked in and barely made a sound. Once I was around two, my dad put me in skates and started me with lessons and I haven’t stopped since.

“The Colorado Avalanche definitely played a big role. Having a team so close to me that I could go watch and cheer on in person made it really fun as a young kid growing up and playing. The University of Denver had more of an impact on me than the Avs did, though. I played for the Jr. Pioneers when I was little and being in Magness Arena and interacting with the players there had me wanting to be just like them.”

Once he arrived in Northern California, Orr skated for the Golden State Elite Eagles and San Jose Jr. Sharks before heading to junior hockey.

“I moved around quite a bit growing up,” said Orr. “In California with Golden State Elite, I played for Larry Cahn and Evan Alexius. Both of them played a monumental role in teaching me how to mature my game so that I will be able to move onto the next level. My first year playing for Larry, I was playing up a year and he helped adjust to the stronger and faster play as an undersized defensemen at the time. The next year playing for Evan, I grew a little bit and was now playing with kids my age and found myself taking a lot of emotional penalties. Evan taught me how to control myself and play my game instead of losing control and getting angry.

“I then moved to the San Jose Jr. Sharks the following two years playing for Robert Savoie. Robert helped teach me a lot and helped me realize that I may have a future in hockey and motivated me to pursue that.”

After all the moving around, one might wonder what keeps Orr motivated to keep going.

His answer is simple and detailed.

“Like most people, I have all of the common motivations,” said Orr. “My family has played such a huge part in my development and growth, especially my dad who would drive me two and a half hours to and from practice 2-3 times a week. They have been my major inspiration since I started playing and continue to be into present day. My friends have also played a major role. I’m blessed enough to have many lifelong friends around the country who continue to root me on and cheer me up when I’m in a rut. One of my biggest motivations are my own failures. Ever since I was young, if I didn’t make a team I wanted to, I found a deeper fire inside me that made me want to prove everyone who doubted my abilities wrong. That fire is still very strong in my age-out year of juniors.

“There have been plenty of teams, coaches, past teammates, and outside influences who have doubted me and all of those just make me work harder to prove them wrong. That motivation is grown by coaches, like Langer, Evan, Larry, Robert and the many others who have believed in me and given me the confidence and room to grow.”

Going forward, Orr said he simply wants to stay on the ice as long as possible and play at a high level.

“My short-term goal is to get a Division I commitment,” Orr said. “I’m still extremely driven to reach that goal and I am putting in the work in every day to reach that. Another short-term goal is to win the Robertson Cup in the NAHL. I’ve been blessed to be a part of a very special team here in Aberdeen and our expectations are to go very far in playoffs and potentially make a run for the whole thing.

“Long term, I plan on going to school and continue to play and get a degree. The hope after that is to continue to play hockey at the highest level I can for as long as I can.”

Photo/Megan Rosendahl

— Matt Mackinder

(December 14, 2025)