MONTREAL – Brian O'Neill, a longtime influential National Hockey League executive who was the second oldest current surviving member of the McGill University men's hockey program, died on July 21. He was 94 and had been in declining health for a number of years.
 
The NHL announced  his death on Friday and news of his passing was reported by columnist Dave Stubbs of NHL.com. A 1994 inductee to the Hockey Hall of Fame in the builder category, O'Neill was appointed as a trustee of the Stanley Cup in 1988, becoming the second McGill grad to do so, after Philip D. Ross, who served in that role from 1893 to 1949. 
 
After attending Loyola High School, O'Neill earned a bachelor of arts from Loyola College, followed by a commerce degree at McGill, where he majored in economics and graduated in 1951.
 
Born Jan. 25, 1929 in Montreal, Brian Francis O'Neill, played high school hockey at Loyola and junior B hockey for the Montreal Winged Wheelers. A solid right winger, he skated for varsity head coach Dave Campbell at McGill from 1949 to 1951. He scored 11 points, including six goals, and collected 13 penalty minutes in 22 regular season games.
 
O'Neill maintained ties with the team as a loyal supporter of the Friends of McGill Hockey, an alumni support group, and occasionally attended the team's annual FMH Awards Gala. He served on the board of numerous charitable endeavours, was named as the Erin Sports Association's Irishman of the Year and was the Grand Marshall for the St. Patrick's parade in 2006.
 
After graduating, he spent a decade in the business magazine field, responsible for the operation and publication of eight periodicals. He managed Wallace Publishing Company in Montreal and in 1962, was appointed business manager of the Financial Times, a Montreal-based weekly.
 
He was appointed as the NHL's director of administration in 1966 to oversee the league's 1967 expansion from six to 12 teams and to handle scheduling of games. From 1971 to 1977, he served as executive director and helped organize the NHL Amateur Draft. In 1977, he was appointed executive vice-president and oversaw league discipline. He stepped down in 1992 but remained associated with the NHL as a consultant. That included administering operations of the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund, looking after European agreements and the NHL alumni association.
 
He is survived by Jean, his wife of 68 years, his children Sean, Darcy, Nancy, Patrick and Sandy, and 11 grandchildren. Visitation is scheduled for Sept. 1 at the Kane Fetterly Funeral Home, 5301 Decarie Blvd. A funeral mass will be celebrated at the St. Patrick's Basilica, 460 Boul. Rene-Levesque W., in Montreal on Sept. 2 at 10 a.m.

SOURCE:

Earl Zukerman
Sports Information Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
514-398-7012
WEBSITE:www.mcgillathletics.ca
E-MAIL:earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca