Jack Butterfield (ice hockey)

John Arlington "Jack" Butterfield (August 1, 1919 – October 16, 2010) was a professional ice hockey administrator and the long-time president of the American Hockey League, serving the longest tenure of any AHL executive (28 years, from 1966 to 1994). After his retirement as president, he served as the AHL's Chairman of the Board until his death and continued to oversee the creation of the annual regular season schedules for the league. He was born in Regina, Saskatchewan.

After leaving the University of Alberta and being wounded in action while serving as a Wellington bomber pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force in World War II, and before serving as a league official, Butterfield worked for his uncle Eddie Shore's New Haven Eagles and Springfield Indians teams as a public relations executive and trainer. He subsequently held management positions in the Pacific Coast Hockey League and the United States Hockey League before returning to the Indians, serving as a rink manager and trainer before rising to become the team's general manager. He was the general manager when the Indians won three consecutive Calder Cup championships in 1960, 1961 and 1962, a feat as yet unmatched in the AHL.

Upon becoming AHL President in 1966, Butterfield was instrumental in establishing the AHL as the primary minor league for the National Hockey League through restructuring of the basic affiliation agreement with the NHL. This agreement would help the league survive when expansion and the World Hockey Association came into being, and Butterfield's acumen became respected enough so that his views were sought by the NHL Rules Committee. He was responsible for moving the league offices to the Springfield area, where they remain to this day.

...
Wikipedia