John D'Amico
Encyclopedia
John David D'Amico was a National Hockey League
(NHL) linesman
and later supervisor of officials.
A native of Toronto
, D'Amico's NHL career started as a referee
on October 12, 1964, when he was 27 years old. He refereed only 19 games before becoming a linesman.
At the time of his retirement after the 1987 season, D'Amico was the last on-ice official active during the Original Six
era. D'Amico's career included 1,689 regular season games and 247 Stanley Cup
playoff games.
After retirement, he became a supervisor of officials for the NHL, a position he held until his death at age 67 after a long battle with leukemia
and bone cancer
.
D'Amico was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame
in 1993.
His health problems started in September 2002 when he suffered a heart attack
and underwent bypass surgery
. Tests following surgery indicated blood abnormalities and a diagnosis of aplastic anemia
, which resulted in gallstone
problems.
Just before his death, D'Amico made news headlines across Canada when he spoke out about the poor quality of the country's health care
system.
D'Amico is survived by wife Dorothy, sons Angelo, Jeff and Anthony, and daughter Tina. Like his father, Angelo is an NHL linesman.
He was renowned during his career for his immense physical strength. This was especially evident when he was required to break up fights on the ice.
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
(NHL) linesman
Official (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, an official is a person who has some responsibility in enforcing the rules and maintaining the order of the game. There are two categories of officials, on-ice officials, who are the referees and linesmen that enforce the rules during game play, and off-ice officials, who have an...
and later supervisor of officials.
A native of Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, D'Amico's NHL career started as a referee
Official (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, an official is a person who has some responsibility in enforcing the rules and maintaining the order of the game. There are two categories of officials, on-ice officials, who are the referees and linesmen that enforce the rules during game play, and off-ice officials, who have an...
on October 12, 1964, when he was 27 years old. He refereed only 19 games before becoming a linesman.
At the time of his retirement after the 1987 season, D'Amico was the last on-ice official active during the Original Six
Original Six
The Original Six is a term for the group of six teams that composed the National Hockey League for the 25 seasons between the 1942–43 season and the 1967 NHL Expansion. These six teams are the Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and the...
era. D'Amico's career included 1,689 regular season games and 247 Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
playoff games.
After retirement, he became a supervisor of officials for the NHL, a position he held until his death at age 67 after a long battle with leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
and bone cancer
Bone tumor
A bone tumor refers to a neoplastic growth of tissue in bone. Abnormal growths found in the bone can be either benign or malignant .-Classification:...
.
D'Amico was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame
Hockey Hall of Fame
The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...
in 1993.
His health problems started in September 2002 when he suffered a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
and underwent bypass surgery
Coronary artery bypass surgery
Coronary artery bypass surgery, also coronary artery bypass graft surgery, and colloquially heart bypass or bypass surgery is a surgical procedure performed to relieve angina and reduce the risk of death from coronary artery disease...
. Tests following surgery indicated blood abnormalities and a diagnosis of aplastic anemia
Aplastic anemia
Aplastic anemia is a condition where bone marrow does not produce sufficient new cells to replenish blood cells. The condition, per its name, involves both aplasia and anemia...
, which resulted in gallstone
Gallstone
A gallstone is a crystalline concretion formed within the gallbladder by accretion of bile components. These calculi are formed in the gallbladder, but may pass distally into other parts of the biliary tract such as the cystic duct, common bile duct, pancreatic duct, or the ampulla of...
problems.
Just before his death, D'Amico made news headlines across Canada when he spoke out about the poor quality of the country's health care
Health care
Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...
system.
D'Amico is survived by wife Dorothy, sons Angelo, Jeff and Anthony, and daughter Tina. Like his father, Angelo is an NHL linesman.
He was renowned during his career for his immense physical strength. This was especially evident when he was required to break up fights on the ice.