John Henry Kelley (July 10, 1927 – September 16, 2020) was an American

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

coach and a member of the

United States Hockey Hall of Fame The United States Hockey Hall of Fame was established in 1973 with the goal of preserving the history of ice hockey in the United States while recognizing the extraordinary contributions of select players, coaches, administrators, officials and ...

. Kelley was the first general manager and head coach of the

New England Whalers New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

of the

World Hockey Association The World Hockey Association (french: Association mondiale de hockey) was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (NHL) ...

(WHA). During the 1972-73 season, he won the

Howard Baldwin Trophy The Howard Baldwin Trophy was presented annually to the World Hockey Association's coach of the year. It was named in honour of New England Whalers co-founder Howard Baldwin. The trophy was renamed Robert Schmertz Memorial Trophy in 1974 in honour ...

as the WHA coach of the year, and also led the Whalers to the

Avco World Trophy The Avco World Trophy, also known as the Avco Cup, is the playoff championship trophy of the defunct World Hockey Association ( 1972–1979). The trophy's naming rights were sold to the former Avco Corporation (a name originally derived from "Avia ...

. He previously served as head coach at

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with ...

, leading the Terriers to back-to-back NCAA hockey championships in 1971 and 1972. In his 10 year coaching career at Boston U (1962–71), he compiled a .720 winning percentage and won six Beanpot Tournaments. Kelley, who was born in Medford, Massachusetts, also played his college hockey at Boston U, participating in the NCAA Hockey Tournament in 1951 and 1952. At the time of his graduation, he was the school's all time leading scorer among defensemen. He then took over as coach at

Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It was founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, then renamed Waterville College after the city where it resides. The donations of Christian philant ...

in 1955. After leaving the Whalers, he later worked in the front offices of the Detroit Red Wings and

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...

. His son is television writer and producer,

David E. Kelley David Edward Kelley (born April 4, 1956) is an American television writer, producer, and former attorney, known as the creator of '' Doogie Howser, M.D.'', '' Picket Fences'', ''Chicago Hope'', ''The Practice'', '' Ally McBeal'', ''Boston Publi ...

Honors

In 2010, he was elected as an inaugural inductee into the

World Hockey Association Hall of Fame The World Hockey Association Hall of Fame is an independent organization dedicated to honoring the World Hockey Association (WHA) which operated from 1972 to 1979 as a major professional ice hockey league. Officially partnered with the United Stat ...

in the coaching category.

Head coaching record

College

WHA

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kelley, Jack 1927 births 2020 deaths American ice hockey coaches Boston University Terriers men's ice hockey coaches Boston University Terriers men's ice hockey players Colby Mules men's ice hockey coaches Detroit Red Wings personnel Hartford Whalers executives Ice hockey coaches from Massachusetts Ice hockey players from Massachusetts New England Whalers coaches Pittsburgh Penguins people Sportspeople from Medford, Massachusetts United States Hockey Hall of Fame inductees World Hockey Association coaches