Jack Butterfield
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Jack Butterfield (b. August 1, 1919 in Regina, Saskatchewan) is a professional ice hockey administrator.
Butterfield was the long-time president of the American Hockey League, serving the longest tenure of any AHL executive (28 years, from 1966 to 1994). Since his retirement as president, he has served as the AHL's Chairman of the Board.
He was instrumental in getting the AHL status as the primary minor league for the National Hockey League. This agreement would help the league survive when expansion and the World Hockey Association came into being.
After being wounded in action while serving in the RCAF in World War II, and before serving as a league official, Butterfield worked for his uncle Eddie Shore's Springfield Indians, advancing up the ranks from trainer to general manager. He was the GM when the Indians won three consecutive Calder Cup championships in 1960, 1961 and 1962, a feat as yet unmatched in the AHL.
Butterfield was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1980. The trophy awarded for the AHL's playoff Most Valuable Player is named in his honor. He was one of the first inductees into the AHL's Hall of Fame in 2006.
