Hockey Historian John Halligan Passes Away at Age 68

Although the New York Rangers are coming off their biggest win of the season, today is a very sad day in Blueshirt Land as former Rangers' PR Director, author, and hockey historian John Halligan passed away at age 68 early this morning.

John spent around 40 years in the business of hockey, working as the Rangers' Director of Relations in addition to holding a similar role with the National Hockey League. He was a co-author of "100 Ranger Greats," a book which basically broke down the list of the Top 100 players ever to wear a Rangers uniform. John was one of the all-around classiest guys this sport knew and was recognized for his contributions to hockey in the United States by receiving the Lester B. Patrick Award in 2007.

On behalf of the Rangers' Tribune, our deepest condolences to the Halligan family.

R.I.P. John, you will be greatly missed.

Below is the official statement from the 100 Ranger Greats Website :

"John Halligan, co-author of 100 RANGER GREATS, passed away in the early morning hours of Wednesday, January 20. He is survived by his wife, Janet.

John spent more than 40 years on the professional hockey scene. He served as Public Relations Director, Business Manager, and Vice President of Communications for the New York Rangers, and also worked for the National Hockey League as Director of Communications and Special Projects.

He was a highly-regarded historian, photo archivist, editor and hockey writer. Throughout his distinguished career, he won professional and civic awards from the Public Relations Society of America, the City of New York, the Professional Hockey Writers Association, and numerous amateur hockey organizations. In 2007, he was named a recipient of the prestigious Lester Patrick Trophy for outstanding service to hockey in the United States.

John was the foremost authority on the Rangers, having authored three previous books about the team: NEW YORK RANGERS: SEVENTY-FIVE YEARS (Tehabi Books), NEW YORK RANGERS: IMAGES OF SPORTS (Arcadia Publishing) and GAME OF MY LIFE: NEW YORK RANGERS (Sports Publishing). No one was more thrilled than John when 100 RANGER GREATS was published in Fall 2009 and he was looking forward to collaborating with us on future projects.

Above all, John was a true gentleman and one of the finest people that we have had the pleasure of knowing. He was a friend and mentor who will be dearly missed.

Those wishing to pass along their condolences can e-mail us at [e-mail] . We will see to it that your message reaches Janet.

Adam Raider
Russ Cohen"