Macgregor Kilpatrick (July 30, 1916 – August 30, 1997) was an American

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two o ...

executive. He was an original owner of the

New Haven Nighthawks The New Haven Nighthawks were a professional ice hockey team that played in the American Hockey League from 1972 to 1992. They had affiliations with the Minnesota North Stars (1972–1977), New York Islanders (1972–1973), New York Rangers ...

of the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...

(AHL). He also served as senior vice president and general counsel for the AHL. Raised in

Ardsley, New York Ardsley is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is part of the town of Greenburgh. The village's population was 4,452 at the 2010 census. The mayor of Ardsley is Nancy Kaboolian. The Ardsley post office serves the entire ...

, Kilpatrick attended the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of ...

where he was an All-American soccer player. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

he served as a fighter pilot in the Pacific and was awarded the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...

and the Distinguished Flying Cross for his valor and heroism in combat. While serving with Fighting Squadron Ten ( VF-10) on , he shot down two Japanese torpedo bombers on January 30, 1943, and was subsequently awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. As commanding officer of Fighting Squadron Five ( VF-5) on ,

Lieutenant Commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...

Kilpatrick helped lead damage control and wounded evacuation efforts on March 19, 1945, and was subsequently awarded the Navy Cross. He received a promotion to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain ...

when he retired from active duty in June 1947. After returning from the war, he earned a law degree from

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by '' U.S. News & Worl ...

and practiced law in Branford, Connecticut, forming the firm of Kilpatrick, Kahl and Josephson with other former Navy officers. In 1970 he was approved as an owner of the expansion team, the New Haven Nighthawks, which began play with the

1972–73 AHL season The 1972–73 AHL season was the 37th season of the American Hockey League. Twelve teams played 76 games each in the schedule. The Cincinnati Swords finished first overall in the regular season, and won the Calder Cup championship. Team changes ...

. He was selected to receive the 1975–76

James C. Hendy Memorial Award The James C. Hendy Memorial Award is presented annually to an executive who has made the most outstanding contribution to the American Hockey League. The award is named after Jim Hendy, a long-time contributor to the AHL and the general manager of ...

, as the executive who made the most outstanding contribution to the AHL. In the summer of 1997, the American Hockey League created the

Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy The Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy is presented annually to the AHL team that finishes the regular season with the most points or highest points percentage. The award is named after late former AHL board member Macgregor Kilpatrick. The award was fi ...

, which is presented annually to the AHL team that finishes the regular season with the most points. Macgregor Kilpatrick died on August 30, 1997. In 2010, Kilpatrick was posthumously inducted into the American Hockey League Hall of Fame.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kilpatrick, Macgregor 1916 births 1997 deaths People from Ardsley, New York United States Naval Academy alumni United States Naval Aviators Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States) Yale Law School alumni New Haven Nighthawks