It is with great sadness that we are announcing the passing of Jim Gregory, NHL Senior Vice President and supporter of special hockey.
Jim Gregory began his career with the St. Michael’s Majors where he won the Memorial Cup as general manager in 1961 and as coach of the Toronto Marlboros in 1964 and once again manager in 1967.
He joined the Toronto Maple Leafs a scout in 1968 and the following year later was promoted to general manager. He spent 10 years as GM in Toronto.
In 1979 Gregory was hired by the NHL as its director of Central Scouting. He became executive director of hockey operations in 1986 and later became Senior Vice President, Hockey Operations and Supervision. He also served as chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame’s selection committee from 1998-2014.
While Jim Gregory was very successful at the highest levels of the sport of hockey he was never far from his community. He was a very active supporter of several charities, including Jake’s House For Children with Autism. Through this partnership he supported our 2009 SHI Tournament called “The Jim Gregory Friendship Tournament”. During his appearances at the tournament he was always very engaged with the players and made sure that they were always the focus of events. For this he holds a very special place in the Grandravine family.
If you would like to pay your respects a visitation will be held Friday, November 1, 2019 from 2:00 – 4:30 pm & 6:00 – 8:00pm at Holy Cross Catholic Funeral Home 211 Langstaff Road East, Thornhill, ON, L3T 3Z6. Players are requested to wear their Grandravine jersey.