Ian "Scotty" Morrison (born April 22, 1930) is a Canadian former National Hockey League referee and vice-president, and the former president and chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Scotty Morrison
Born
Ian Morrison

(1930-04-22) April 22, 1930 (age 94)
NationalityCanadian
Known forNHL Executive

Morrison played junior hockey in Quebec and then became a referee, working in junior and senior amateur leagues. He moved to Vancouver to work in the Western Hockey League, and from there was hired by the NHL at the age of 24, at that time the youngest referee in league history.

Morrison left the NHL in 1955 and became referee-in-chief of the Western Hockey League, while also working games as a referee. He also worked in sales, and in that job was transferred to Toronto in 1964. In June 1965, Morrison returned to the NHL as referee-in-chief. His title became vice-president of officiating in 1981. In 1986, Morrison became the NHL's vice-president of project development, assigned to the Hockey Hall of Fame where he was made president. He served in that role until 1991 when he became chairman of the Hall, while his NHL vice-president title was dropped in 1992. Morrison led the Hall of Fame through its relocation from the grounds of Exhibition Place to its present site in downtown Toronto, and retired in 1998.

Morrison was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in the builders' category in 1999. He received the Wayne Gretzky International Award in 2001.[1] He became a Stanley Cup trustee in 2002 and served in that role until 2023.

Personal

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Morrison's son, Perry, was one of 84 workers to die aboard the oil-drilling rig Ocean Ranger when it sank with no survivors off the coast of Newfoundland in 1982.[2]

Morrison is well known in Haliburton, Ontario for his community service. He chaired an annual hockey tournament for many years called the Scotty Morrison Charity Hockey Tournament, which raised over $700,000 for Community Care Haliburton County. In 2016, he was awarded a Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers at the Pinestone by the local Haliburton community.[3][4][5][6]

References

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  1. ^ "Wayne Gretzky International Award". U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  2. ^ Duhatschek, Eric (December 11, 2006). "Scotty Morrison feels Gainey's pain". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  3. ^ "Board of Directors". hhhs.ca. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  4. ^ Gervais, Lisa (January 5, 2017). "Scotty beams at surprise honour". thehighlander.ca. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  5. ^ Arike, Mark (January 30, 2015). "Scotty Morrison welcomes NHL alumni and refs to tourney". thehighlander.ca. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  6. ^ Lum, Darren (2017-03-01). "Morrison receives national medal". www.haliburtonecho.ca. Retrieved 2017-07-10.
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Preceded by Stanley Cup Trustee
2002–2023
Succeeded by