Bill Beagan

William Thomas Beagan (born December 1, 1937) is a Canadian retired ice hockey administrator and ice hockey referee. He served in the Canadian Army for thirteen years, before refereeing in the National Hockey League (NHL) for two seasons. He was commissioner of the International Hockey League (IHL) from 1969 to 1978, the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League (OMJHL) from 1978 to 1979, the Eastern Hockey League from 1979 to 1981, and the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) from 1985 to 1998. He was a partial owner and the general manager of the Toledo Goaldiggers from 1981 to 1985, and led the team to two Turner Cup championships.

Beagan is credited for turning around IHL finances and making it a top-tier development system for future NHL talent. He had agreements with the NHL to develop on-ice officials while commissioner of the IHL and the CCHA. He signed the CCHA to the first national television contract for colleges in the United States, introduced instant replay to the league, and shared revenue with the schools. On-ice success was realized when CCHA teams won six NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament championships during his tenure. He has been honoured with the United Nations Emergency Force Medal, the Canadian Forces' Decoration and the Canadian Peacekeeping Service Medal. In 1998, the CCHA made him the namesake of the Bill Beagan Trophy for the most valuable player in the CCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.

Early life William Thomas Beagan was born on December 1, 1937, in Parry Sound, Ontario, as the second youngest in a family of twelve children. He learned to skate on a frozen pond at age six, by wearing multiple pairs of socks in a second-hand pair of ice skates that were five sizes too big. He attended Parry Sound High School until tenth grade, then enrolled in the Soldier Apprentice program in the Canadian Army at age 16. He later worked at the National Defence Headquarters in Ottawa, then was involved with the North American Aerospace Defense Command while stationed in the United States.

Beagan was promoted to refereeing in the National Hockey League (NHL) by Scotty Morrison in 1967. He was one of the three match officials in the game on January 13, 1968, where Bill Masterton of the Minnesota North Stars sustained a head injury, and later died as a result of the on-ice accident.

International Hockey League The Turner Cup was the championship trophy of the International Hockey League.

Beagan was recommended for commissioner of the IHL by NHL president Clarence Campbell, who mentored him as an on-ice official. He stated that IHL players were not considered professionals despite receiving some compensation, and were classified as amateurs by AHAUS. He testified that the IHL was the largest financial contributor to AHAUS at the time, had an agreement with the NHL to develop on-ice officials and players, but the World Hockey Association (WHA) did not negotiate an agreement. Beagan felt that the NHL was no longer able to contribute much towards amateur programs in the United States or Canada due to competition from the WHA, which undermined the IHL. He stated the league faced challenges to maintain quality due to changes to immigration laws which deterred participation by players and referees who were Canadian. The OMJHL stood to lose $200,000 combined from Molson Brewery and the Labatt Brewing Company. Beagan petitioned the Government of Ontario to overturn the decision, stating the breweries had been good corporate citizens by supporting sports in Ontario.

Beagan's tenure with the OHL ended after 42 days, and he described his relationship in dealing with contract negotiations as "rocky". He stated, "They hired me to be captain. When I got there, I found out I was to be the second mate". The Canadian Press reported that Beagan claimed he was fired from the OMJHL, whereas the league stated he resigned after six weeks on the job. A settlement was subsequently reached out of court. The league was rebranded as the Eastern Hockey League, which he oversaw for two seasons until 1981. He was credited with coining the phrase, "Road to the Joe", in reference to end-of-year tournament culminating at the Joe Louis Arena. On-ice results improved during his tenure, and CCHA teams won six NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament championships.

Beagan resigned as CCHA commissioner in 1998. He donated his personal collection of documents and hockey memorabilia to the Hockey Hall Of Fame Resource Centre and Archives later in 2011.

Awards and honours Beagan received the United Nations Emergency Force Medal in 1959, the Canadian Forces' Decoration in 1967, the Distinguished Service Award from AHAUS in 1974, the International Hockey League executive of the year award from The Hockey News in 1976, the Dedicated Service Award from AHAUS in 1979, the minor league executive of the year award from The Hockey News in 1982, the Canadian Peacekeeping Service Medal in 2001, and was inducted into the Bobby Orr Hall of Fame in Parry Sound in 2004.

In 1998, the most valuable player award for the CCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was renamed the Bill Beagan Trophy.