John Grocott (February 15, 1930 – May 18, 2012) was an American ice hockey

defenseman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the la ...

who played for Dartmouth College in the early 1950s.

Career

Grocott graduated from Melrose High School, Massachusetts, in 1948 and then headed north to attend

Dartmouth Dartmouth may refer to: Places * Dartmouth, Devon, England ** Dartmouth Harbour * Dartmouth, Massachusetts, United States * Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada * Dartmouth, Victoria, Australia Institutions * Dartmouth College, Ivy League university i ...

. He joined the ice hockey team in the midst of their back-to-back appearances in the championship game appearances, but as he was a freshman he was unable to yet play with the varsity team. By the time Grocott appeared for

Eddie Jeremiah Edward John Jeremiah ( hy, Էդդի Ժերեմիա; November 4, 1905 – June 7, 1967) was an American professional ice hockey player who played 15 games in the National Hockey League for the New York Americans and Boston Bruins during the 1931� ...

's team in 1949, many of the star players had already graduated and Dartmouth was no longer the premier power they had been throughout the decade. That did not stop Grocott from establishing himself as one of the best defensemen in country. In his senior season he was named as team captain and, despite the Indians finishing with a 5–18 record, he was named as an AHCA

First Team All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

. During his tenure at Dartmouth, Grocott was a member of

Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Fiji, is a social fraternity with more than 144 active chapters and 10 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, in 1848. Along with Phi Kappa Psi, Phi ...

and graduated with a degree in economics. After college he joined the Marines and fought in the Korean War. After returning from Korea, Grocott laced up his skates one final time, joining the US national team for the

1955 Ice Hockey World Championships The 1955 Ice Hockey World Championships was the 22nd edition of the Ice Hockey World Championships. The tournament was held in Düsseldorf, Dortmund, Krefeld and Cologne, West Germany from February 25 to March 6, 1955. A total of 14 nations part ...

. The team was in the running for the

bronze medal A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receive ...

to the end, but a tie in their final game against

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

allowed the Czechs the opening they needed to claim sole possession of third place, and Grocott's team finished off of the podium. After his hockey career ended, Grocott worked for

Merrill Lynch Merrill (officially Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated), previously branded Merrill Lynch, is an American investment management and wealth management division of Bank of America. Along with BofA Securities, the investment bank ...

and was promoted to Assistant Manager when the company opened its Honolulu branch in 1969. Grocott returned to New Hampshire in 1985 and settled there for the rest of his life.

Personal

John married his wife Judith in 1956 and the pair had four children. John and Judith remained together until his death in 2012 after a long illness.

Statistics

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Grocott, John 1930 births 2012 deaths Canadian ice hockey defencemen Ice hockey players from Massachusetts Dartmouth Big Green men's ice hockey players Sportspeople from Melrose, Massachusetts United States Marine Corps personnel of the Korean War Military personnel from Massachusetts United States Marines AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans Ice hockey people from Middlesex County, Massachusetts