Tag: Marshall Johnston

PHSF honours four with Ace Award

OKOTOKS, AB (April 1, 2026) — Four men who combined to spend more than 100 years working for NHL teams will share in the Ace Award when the non-profit Professional Hockey Scouts Foundation holds its annual Wall of Honour induction dinner in Okotoks on Aug. 28.

Lorne Davis, Del Wilson, Ted Hampson and Marshall Johnston will be honoured on an evening when 21 other scouts will be inducted into the Wall of Honour. Davis, Wilson, Hampson and Johnston were among the original inductees in 2024.

The Ace Award is presented in honour of the late Garnet (Ace) Bailey, a longtime NHL scout. He was the Los Angeles Kings’ director of pro scouting and was en route to their training camp when the plane he was on was hijacked and deliberately flown into the South Tower of New York City’s World Trade Centre on Sept. 11, 2001. The Ace Award is presented annually to an individual or individuals who are seen to have made outstanding contributions and efforts to the NHL scouting profession.

This year’s recipients are recognized by those in the scouting fraternity for their dedication to the profession and their willingness to help those who were working to follow in their footsteps.

“Congratulations to Lorne, Del, Ted and Marshall, all of whom deserve to be honoured with the Ace Award,” said Erin Ginnell, the Foundation’s president. “All four gentlemen are pillars in the scouting community, not only for their successes but by also being the great people that they have been over the many years of scouting.” 

Archie Henderson, a now-retired scout and a member of the Wall of Honour, chaired the selection committee.

“I went back and looked at the history of these guys; I would encourage hockey fans to do the same and look at what these guys did, not just in their scouting careers, but as players and executives,” Henderson said. “The number of championships they won . . . the number of teams they impacted is amazing.

“The one word I would use to describe the four of them is ‘passion’ . . . they had to have passion for hockey and the game of life to do what they did. They were iconic, not just in scouting but in all different facets and levels of North American and international hockey.”

Davis, who died in 2007 at the age of 77, was an NHL scout for more than 40 years — 29 of those with the Edmonton Oilers and 10 with the St. Louis Blues. He also worked with the New York Rangers and the WHA’s Houston Aeros. During his time with the Oilers, he helped the organization win five Stanley Cup titles. He also won a Stanley Cup as a player with the 1952-53 Montreal Canadiens. He has been a member of the Regina Sports Hall of Fame since 2003.

Wilson, who died in 2015 at the age of 88, was a scout with the Montreal Canadiens for 47 years, during which time they won 18 Stanley Cup titles. He also was an owner and general manager of the Regina Pats, and a founder of what now is the Western Hockey League. The Del Wilson Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the WHL’s top goaltender. He is a member of the Regina and Saskatchewan sports halls of fame, and the Saskatchewan Hockey Hall of Fame.

Hampson didn’t go scouting until ending his playing career at the age of 44. He started his scouting career with NHL Central Scouting, before moving on to the St. Louis Blues (21 years), Colorado Avalanche (2) and Vancouver Canucks (10). He was 85 when he retired in 2022. He is a member of the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame.

Johnston, 84, moved from the New Jersey Devils’ coaching staff to become director of player personnel in 1983, a role he filled through nine seasons. He then spent nine seasons with the Ottawa Senators as director of player personnel and then general manager. He followed that with three seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks and 11 as director of pro scouting for the Carolina Hurricanes, winning the Stanley Cup with them in 2006. He has been inducted into the International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame — he was a regular on Canada’s national team in the mid-1960s — and the Prince Albert Sports Hall of Fame.

In 2025, the Ace Award was presented to two veteran scouts — Mike Penny and the late Barry Fraser. The initial recipients, in 2024, were former team executive and long-time play-by-play man Dennis Beyak and Gregg Drinnan, a sports journalist for more than 40 years.

You are able to follow the PHSF and its happenings at its website — hockeyscoutsfoundation.com.

For further information, contact:

Garth Malarchuk

PHSF chairman of the board

GMalarchuk@torontomapleleafs.com

Gregg Drinnan

PHSF editor/historian

greggdrinnan@gmail.com

Meet five more Wall of Honour inductees . . . general public dinner tickets now available

The Western Canada Professional Hockey Scouts Foundation’s inaugural Wall of Honour induction dinner is set to go on July 30 at the Centennial Arena in Okotoks. . . . All told, 45 past and present-day scouts will be inducted into the Wall of Honour, which has its permanent home in the arena foyer. . . . Here’s a look at five of those inductees. For more, check out the Foundation’s website at hockeyscoutsfoundation.com and click on Wall of Honour. . . . Tickets to the dinner for the general public also are available off the website.

CRAIG BUTTON

(Jan. 3, 1963 —)

CRAIG BUTTON

A native of Rochester, N.Y., he was born into a hockey family. His father, Jack, was an executive with the AHL’s Rochester Americans, and his mother, Bridget, was secretary to Punch Imlach, the long-time GM/head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs. . . . Jack was hired by the NHL in 1975 to run Central Scouting. . . . Craig’s brother, Tod, is in scouting, too. . . . Craig got his scouting start with the Minnesota North Stars (1988). He was the franchise’s director of scouting (1992-98) and director of player personnel (1998-2000) after it moved to Dallas. . . . Won Stanley Cup with Dallas (1999). . . . Was vice-president and GM of the Calgary Flames (2000-03). . . . Went on to scout for Toronto (2004-07) before joining TSN as director of scouting. . . . Has worked in media since 2008 with TSN, NHL Network, NBC and CBC.

JOHN CHAPMAN

(Aug. 13, 1945 —)

A native of Stettler, Atla., he was a prominent junior coach before going scouting. . . . Began with the New York Rangers, then was with the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Florida Panthers for two seasons. . . . Spent remainder of his career (1995-2023) with the Philadelphia Flyers, working at various times as amateur scout, pro scout, director of player development and director of player personnel. . . . Retired prior to 2023-24. . . . Coached three of the six hockey-playing Sutter brothers. Spent six seasons (1980-86) as head coach of the WHL’s Lethbridge Broncos. . . . In April 2009, he rescued a mother and her two-month-old daughter after stroller rolled into a retention pond in Calgary. . . . Has written book — Janny: A Woman of Fortitude and Grace — about battle with breast cancer staged by his late wife of 35 years.

MARSHALL JOHNSTON

(June 6, 1941 —)

MARSHALL JOHNSTON

A native of Birch Hills, Sask., he was an All-American defenceman at the U of Denver before representing Canada at 1964 and 1968 Olympic Winter Games and 1966 and 1967 World Championships. . . . Played in NHL with the Minnesota North Stars and California Golden Seals. . . . Was Golden Seals’ head coach (1973-75) before returning to Denver for six seasons, the last four (1977-81) as head coach. . . . Career as an NHL coach and executive featured stints with the Colorado Rockies/New Jersey Devils, Ottawa Senators and Chicago Blackhawks. . . . Concluded his scouting career after 11 seasons as Carolina Hurricanes’ director of professional scouting. . . . Won Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes in 2006. . . . Inducted into International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame (1998) and Prince Albert Sports Hall of Fame (2002).

IAN McKENZIE

(May 15, 1938 — May 31, 2022)

IAN McKENZIE

Born in Lyalta, Alta., he served 15 years in the RCMP before going into scouting, starting with St. Louis Blues. . . . He made his name with the Flames, first in Atlanta and and then Calgary. . . . Began a 25-year association with the Flames when he joined Atlanta. After one season there, he made the move to Calgary with the franchise in 1980. . . . Concluded his scouting career with the Phoenix Coyotes. . . . In 2000, he estimated that he would spend 200,000 miles on the road in one season. . . . Won the 1989 Stanley Cup with the Flames. . . . Had a lengthy involvement with Alf Cadman and the junior Red Deer Rustlers when they got into the AJHL. That turned out to be McKenzie’s connection to Cliff Fletcher and the Flames.

BOB OWEN

(Sept. 29, 1949 —)

A native of Winnipeg, he began his scouting career in 1980 as a part-timer with NHL Central Scouting. . . . In April 1984, he moved to the Los Angeles Kings and was there for 10 years. . . . For the next three-plus years, he operated RHO Hockey, an independent scouting service. . . . In August 1998, he joined the Atlanta Thrashers and stayed for 13 years. . . . He completed his scouting career with the Winnipeg Jets, starting in October 2011 and lasting until he retired nine years later. . . . As a player, he spent three seasons (1966-69) with the Regina Pats. . . . He later coached the midget AAA Regina Pat Canadians for five seasons (1973-78) and the SJHL’s Regina Pat Blues for two (1978-80).

Scouts’ Wall of Honour to open with 45 inductees

The Western Canada Professional Hockey Scouts Foundation will induct 45 members of the scouting fraternity into its Wall of Honour this summer.

The banquet is scheduled to be held in Okotoks, Alta., on Monday, July 29.

Comprising three Matrix screens, the WCPHSF Wall of Honour video presentation will be on permanent display at the Centennial Arena in Okotoks.

The first inductees feature five pioneers of the scouting fraternity, including Danny Summers, who returned from the Second World War to play for the CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers before getting into scouting, and Murray (Torchy) Schell, who spent summers as an assistant equipment manager with the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders while he was scouting.

Also being inducted will be 17 scouts from the Early Era (1968-80), including Elmer Benning, who put more than 1 million miles on one car while on the scouting trail; Pat (Paddy) Ginnell, who was a legendary junior coach before turning to scouting; and Del Wilson, a long-time scout who also was a founding father of the major junior WHL.

There also will be 20 scouts from the Modern Era (1981-present) inducted, including Vaughn Karpan, who has been a key figure with the Vegas Golden Knights; Al Murray, one of the architects of the Tampa Bay Lightning’s success; and Barry Trapp, who retired in August 2023 after more than 60 years in the game.

Rounding out the inaugural class will be Lorne Frey and the late Graham Tuer, both of whom had lengthy scouting careers in junior hockey.

Garnet (Ace) Bailey also will be honoured. Bailey scouted for the Edmonton Oilers and then the Los Angeles Kings. He was en route to the Kings’ training camp aboard United Airlines flight 175 when it crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City on Sept. 11, 2001.

“Our selection committee did an excellent job of recognizing these candidates for the Wall of Honour,” Foundation president Erin Ginnell said. “These scouts are not only builders of the game that put thousands of players into the NHL and pro ranks, but also represented their teams and the game with class, professionalism and determination to succeed.  “A lot of these honorees were real mentors to people like myself when I first started; they were always there with help travelling, directions, and generally just made you feel a part of the fraternity.”

The complete list of inductees (* – denotes deceased):

SPECIAL RECOGNITION: *-Garnet (Ace) Bailey.

PIONEERS: *-George Agar, *-Frank Currie, *-Murray (Torchy) Schell, *-Danny Summers, *-Cecil (Tiny) Thompson.

EARLY ERA (1968-1980): *-Elmer Benning, *-Bart Bradley, *-Lorne Davis, *-Gerry Ehman, *-Barry Fraser, *-Pat Ginnell, Ted Hampson, *-Charlie Hodge, Earl Ingarfield Sr, *-Lou Jankowski, Marshall Johnston, Bill Lesuk, *-Ian McKenzie, *-Gerry Melnyk, Bob Owen, *-Clare Rothermel, *-Del Wilson.

MODERN ERA (1981-present): Scott Bradley, Craig Button, John Chapman, George Fargher, Tony Feltrin, Bruce Franklin, Bruce Haralson, Archie Henderson, Les Jackson, Vaughn Karpan, Ross Mahoney, Bert Marshall, Wayne Meier, Al Murray, Gerry O’Flaherty, Kevin Prendergast, Blair Reid, Glen Sanders, Peter Sullivan, Barry Trapp.

JUNIOR: Lorne Frey, *-Graham Tuer.

As well, five scouts from Western Canada were honoured at the Sept. 30 startup banquet in Okotoks with the WCPHSF’s Recognition and Dedication Service Award. Those five are Ron Delorme, Glen Dirk, Garth Malarchuk, Don Paarup and Mike Penny.

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“Our committee’s selections were primarily based on years of combined service as a scout and/or an association to the scouting process,” Garth Malarchuk, the Chairman of the Foundation’s board of directors, said. “I think everyone who has been associated with the scouting fraternity will agree that this is a pretty impressive group of individuals that we will be honouring. “Trust me, our committee could easily have added another 15-20 deserving individuals to this list, but we had to cut it off somewhere.” Moving forward, we certainly don’t want to miss anyone and the plan is to keep adding individuals to our Foundation’s Wall of Honour on an annual basis.”

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The startup banquet on Sept. 30 was a rip-roaring success, highlighted by a roast of Hockey Night in Canada host Ron MacLean, along with silent and live sweater auctions. If you weren’t fortunate enough to attend, you are able to find a highly entertaining video of Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman roasting MacLean at hockeyscoutsfoundation.com.

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Planning is well underway for the inaugural induction banquet on July 29 in Okotoks. Banquet details, including information on tickets, will be announced in the near future.