Edmonton Oilers Heritage Website

Clarence Campbell may have been one of the University of Alberta’s most famous alumni, but he is also one of the most controversial presidents in National Hockey League (NHL) history.

From the late 1940s to his retirement from the president’s chair in 1977, Campbell was the most powerful man in hockey. Under his influence, he helped turn a struggling six-team circuit that was in a state of financial chaos into an 18-team league that was still looking to expand by the time he left office.

Born in Fleming, Saskatchewan, on July 9, 1905, Campbell was an exemplary student of law, earning honours at the University of Alberta before going on to Oxford where he earned admission as a Rhodes Scholar. But Campbell put his legal career on hold during the Second World War, where he was a major and commander the 4th Canadian Armoured Division.

After the War, Campbell decided not to return to law, and instead took over the role of president of the National Hockey League. At the time of his arrival, North America’s top pro circuit was in disarray. At one point in the 1930s, the NHL had as many as 10 teams in the league, but high players’ wages, the toll of war and empty seats had reduced the league down to six teams. Campbell decided that the NHL should not pursue a policy of expansion; instead, the six existing franchises—Montréal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins and New York Rangers—would form the basis of a stronger-but-smaller league. To that end, Campbell urged NHL governors to rebuff expansion applications from the American Hockey League powerhouse Cleveland Barons, who tried to enter the league in 1953, and California-based Western Hockey League clubs that wished to defect to the NHL from the late 1940s to the early 1960s.

Under Campbell, the NHL introduced a regular, annual All-Star game, which pitted the Cup champs against the top players from the other five teams in the league. The format would eventually evolve into the All-Star game format we know today. In 1948, Campbell was instrumental in creating the NHL pension fund, and his influence helped create the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1960.

Campbell will be best remembered for leading the NHL into the modern era and by presiding over the most ambitious expansion plan in the league’s history. After leading the NHL through 22 years of “Original Six” operation, Campbell green-lighted a plan which saw the league double in size in 1967, with the addition of the Oakland Seals, Minnesota North Stars, Los Angeles Kings, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins and St. Louis Blues. By the time Campbell retired, the NHL had swelled to 18 teams, and expansion had begun in earnest to non-traditional hockey markets in the American South.

During many of the 31 years as president, Campball was a highly-controversial figure. In the 1950s he was repeatedly called a tyrant by French-Canadian stars like Bernie “Boom Boom” Geoffrion and Maurice "Rocket" Richard. The Montréal Canadiens accused him of being anti-French and some of his controversial rulings actually raised the passions of French-Canadian nationalists. For example, if Campbell had not decided to suspend Richard for the entirety of the 1955 playoffs, the Quiet Revolution’s progress may have been slowed.

Campbell approved one controversial rule change to weaken the Canadiens' 1956-1960 five-Cups-in-a-row dynasty. Campbell green-lighted a rule change that would allow a player serving a minor penalty to come out of the penalty box if the opposing team scored on the power-play. That rule change, which is a part of the game today, slowed the Canadiens’ vaunted power-play that would often score two or three times on a one-man advantage.