Who was the NHL's first president?

Who was the NHL’s first president? Frank Calder was the National Hockey League’s first president.

Calder was a British-born Canadian hockey executive and journalist who had served as secretary-treasurer of the National Hockey Association. During the 1917 conflict that led NHA owners to create the NHL, he helped organize the transition and was elected president and secretary-treasurer of the new league.

He held the presidency from 1917 until his death in 1943, guiding the NHL through its early expansion into the United States and its competition with rival professional leagues. His tenure covered the league’s unstable formative years, including disputes over players, franchises and the Stanley Cup.

Calder’s name remains prominent in hockey because the Calder Memorial Trophy is awarded annually to the NHL’s top rookie. The American Hockey League’s championship trophy is also called the Calder Cup, although it is a separate award. Art Ross and Clarence Campbell were important NHL figures, but neither was the league’s first president.