William McCreary (born November 17, 1955) is a former

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other title ...

. Before retiring in 2011, McCreary officiated 1,737 regular season games, 297 playoff games, and one

NHL All-Star Game The National Hockey League All-Star Game () is an exhibition ice hockey tournament that is traditionally held during the regular season of the National Hockey League (NHL), with many of the League's star players playing against each other. The ga ...

. McCreary wore uniform number 7 since the

1994–95 NHL season The 1994–95 NHL season was the 78th regular season of the National Hockey League. The season start was delayed due to a lockout of players imposed by the NHL franchise owners. After a new labour agreement was reached between the owners and t ...

and wore a

helmet A helmet is a form of protective gear worn to protect the head. More specifically, a helmet complements the skull in protecting the human brain. Ceremonial or symbolic helmets (e.g., a policeman's helmet in the United Kingdom) without protecti ...

for most of his refereeing career. He worked fifteen

Stanley Cup Finals The Stanley Cup Finals in ice hockey (also known as the Stanley Cup Final among various media, ) is the annual championship series of the National Hockey League (NHL). The winner is awarded the Stanley Cup, North America's oldest professional spo ...

, the 1991 Canada Cup, the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, and the

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

and

2010 Winter Olympics The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XXI Olympic Winter Games () and also known as Vancouver 2010 (), were an international winter multi-sport event held from February 12 to 28, 2010 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with ...

, where he officiated the gold medal game each time.

Early life

McCreary was born on November 17, 1955, in

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as The Royal City, it is roughly east of Kitchener, Ontario, Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Ontario Highway 6, ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. He learned to skate at the age of three years old after beating meningitis, which his sister had died from. McCreary competed with the Buffalo Tondas, Windsor Spitfires, and the Guelph Holody Platers in the SOJHL from 1973-76. After going undrafted out of junior hockey, he accepted a position at a machine shop and worked side jobs as a referee in local minor hockey games.

Career

McCreary was invited to an

(NHL) officials training camp in 1981 after officiating for three years. After refereeing one major junior playoff game, he was hired by Scotty Morrison for the NHL. He eventually refereed his first NHL game in 1984 at Capital Centre in

Landover, Maryland Landover is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 25,998. Landover is contained between Sheriff Road and Central Avenue to the ...

, then home of the

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The Capitals compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NH ...

. During the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

, he officiated the men's hockey gold medal game won by Canada vs USA by the score of 5-2. During the

2004–05 NHL lockout The 2004–05 NHL lockout was a labor lockout that resulted in the cancellation of the National Hockey League (NHL) season, which would have been its 88th season of play. The main dispute was the league's desire to implement a salary cap to ...

, McCreary worked building

kitchen cabinets A kitchen is a room (architecture), room or part of a room used for cooking and food preparation in a dwelling or in a commercial establishment. A modern middle-class residential kitchen is typically equipped with a Kitchen stove, stove, a sink ...

to make ends meet. In

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, McCreary was selected to officiate the

for the 13th year in a row. On February 16, 2008, McCreary refereed his 1,500th NHL game in a match between the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...

and the

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The t ...

. In

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

, McCreary officiated the Stanley Cup Finals for the 14th time. He was also selected as one of 13 NHL referees to officiate at the

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, including the Gold Medal Game. On December 22, 2009, McCreary officiated when

Martin Brodeur Martin Pierre Brodeur (; born May 6, 1972) is a Canadian–American former professional ice hockey goaltender and current team executive. He played 22 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), 21 of them for the New Jersey Devils, with whom ...

broke

Terry Sawchuk Terrance Gordon Sawchuk (December 28, 1929 – May 31, 1970) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played 21 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Los Angeles Kin ...

's career shutout record with his 104th shutout. Although he had previously announced that he would retire as an NHL referee at the end of the 2009-10 NHL season, he returned for the 2010-11 NHL season. The next year, he was inducted into the Guelph Sports Hall of Fame. McCreary officiated his last NHL game on April 2, 2011, in Washington, D.C., between the

and

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Con ...

, a game won by the Capitals 5-4. On June 23, 2014, the

Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame () is a museum and hall of fame located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League (NHL) records, memorabilia and National Hockey Le ...

Selection Committee announced that McCreary would be enshrined in the Hall of Fame with the 2014 class of inductees.

Personal life

McCreary has two sons from an earlier relationship and two daughters with his wife Mary Ann.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McCreary, Bill 1955 births Living people Canadian ice hockey officials Hockey Hall of Fame inductees Ice hockey people from Guelph National Hockey League officials

Early life

Career

Personal life

See also

References

External links