Ron Foyt has been named the fifth recipient of the NCHC’s Mark Rudolph Officiating Achievement Award for the 2017-18 season.
Foyt completed his fifth season as an NCHC officiating supervisor in 2017-18 and was presented with the award on Sept. 22. He is the first conference supervisor of officials to receive the award.
An officiating supervisor with the NCHC from its inception, Foyt has participated in each of the conference’s five Frozen Faceoff championship tournaments. W
“I’ve been around hockey for a long time, have experienced hockey at every level and I’ve simply never met anybody that loves hockey as much as ‘AJ’ does,” said NCHC director of officiating Don Adam in a statement. “At times, I’ve explained to Ron that I’ve needed a break from hockey, only to receive a phone call 10 minutes later inquiring as to whether or not my break was long enough.
“Ron’s passion is contagious and his attention to detail is never ending. The NCHC Officiating Program is in a much better place today because of Ron’s tireless contributions over the course of our five seasons and I applaud his lifetime of contributions to officiating.”
In addition to Foyt’s accomplishments with the NHL, WHA and WCHA, he was also a key contributor in the building of the USA Hockey Officiating Program. He officiated in the trend at the time, Roller Hockey International, while also serving as the National Referee in Chief for USA Hockey Inline.
The Rudolph Award is named in honor of Mark Rudolph, a longtime official and distinguished administrator who established USA Hockey’s National Officiating Program, among many other accomplishments. The award is presented annually to a member of the NCHC officiating staff following each season at officiating camp.
“When I started as the first Officiating Program Director for USA Hockey in the summer of 1982, I received many letters of congratulations from my friends back East, but one person stood out,” added Rudolph. “‘AJ’ called and mentioned that we met a few times while he was in Buffalo working the Sabres games. He offered to help the National Officiating Program in any way possible. At the time, the entire program consisted of a rule book and an open-book rules exam. The next year, I started writing the manuals and developing the summer camps. Of course, Ron was one of the first people I called to solicit advice and help. He was there in 1982 and has always been the first person to raise his hand whenever help was needed.
“His fingerprints are all over college hockey and the USA Hockey Officiating Program. He is a true mentor and a lifelong friend.”
PREVIOUS RUDOLPH AWARD WINNERS
• 2013-14 – John Philo
• 2014-15 – Paul Carnathan
• 2015-16 – Joe Sullivan
• 2016-17 – Timm Walsh
