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Andrews among 2005 inductees into B.C. Hockey Hall of Fame

January 20, 2005 - American Hockey League (AHL) News Release


SPRINGFIELD, Mass. ... The B.C. Hockey Hall of Fame on Wednesday announced its Class of 2005 with five new inductees, including American Hockey League President and CEO David Andrews.

Andrews will be joined by two former Vancouver Canucks -- elected from the Player's category -- Greg Adams and Mel Bridgman, longtime professional coach and player Tom McVie and the 1982 Air Canada Cup midget championship team from Burnaby as the 2005 Inductees.

Andrews has a notable hockey background including player, coach, manager and league president. His playing career included a season with the University of British Columbia, where he was selected MVP. Following his playing career, Andrews served as technical director for the British Columbia Amateur Hockey Association, and served on the Canadian Hockey Association Development Council where he was instrumental in the development of national coaching and officiating certification programs, and in the development of the CHA Program of Excellence.

As a coach Andrews served three years as an assistant and two years as a head coach in the Western Hockey League – including coaching in the Memorial Cup Finals with the Victoria Cougars – and he was the first head coach of the Canadian National Under-18 program. Andrews has extensive sport management experience outside of hockey as well, including several years as a consultant in high performance sport programs in the Province of British Columbia.

Andrews' management experience included a Calder Cup championship team in 1993 and an AHL Executive of the Year Award in 1990, and he served on the management team of two Stanley Cup champions. Presently serving in his 11th season as AHL President and CEO, Andrews has presided over a period of unprecedented growth for the league, which has grown from 16 to 29 teams (in 2005-06), added more than 20 new cities, and expanded its footprint geographically to create a national presence. His positioning of the AHL as a dedicated player development league has led to affiliation relationships with all 30 NHL teams, and the absorption of six cities from the former IHL.

This growth has led to an environment where more than 80 percent of NHL players, coaches and officials have served an apprenticeship in the American Hockey League. Attendance in the AHL has grown from 2.9 million in 1992-93 to an anticipated 7 million in the 2004-05 season. During his tenure Andrews has played a significant role both independently and with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman to design, develop, and introduce significant changes to professional hockey's rules. Among these changes were the four on four overtime concept, the awarding of a point for a regulation tie, and the establishment of hurry-up line changes to speed up the game.

Voting was conducted by the B.C. Hockey Hall of Fame's selection committee, comprised of representatives from the media, amateur and professional hockey. Induction ceremonies will be held in Penticton, B.C., on July 22, 2005, at the Penticton Lakeside Resort Convention Centre & Casino.

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