Red Storey

Lore & Background

Storey began his athletic career playing football for the Toronto Argonauts from 1936 to 1941, winning the Grey Cup in 1937 and 1938. In the 1938 Grey Cup game, he scored three touchdowns in twelve minutes in the fourth quarter against Winnipeg. He received offers from the New York Giants and Chicago Bears but declined to leave Canada, retiring after a knee injury. Simultaneously, he played competitive lacrosse for Orillia and the Hamilton Tigers, and was a prominent senior men's baseball player, receiving an offer from the Philadelphia Athletics. He also played hockey as a defenceman for the River Vale Skeeters in New Jersey and later the Montreal Royals.

By the mid-1940s, Storey began officiating football, lacrosse, and hockey games. He became an NHL referee in 1950 and worked until 1959. On April 4, 1959, he officiated Game 6 of the Stanley Cup semifinal between the Montreal Canadiens and Chicago Black Hawks. Montreal won the series with a goal in the final 88 seconds, leading to near-rioting by Chicago fans and accusations from Black Hawks coach Rudy Pilous that Storey had choked by not calling penalties. After an Ottawa Journal article reported that NHL president Clarence Campbell said Storey had "frozen" on two calls, Storey resigned immediately and never returned to the NHL.

Storey was popular with NHL players because he talked with them. Goaltender Gump Worsley wrote in his autobiography that he would ask Storey where to get a beer after a game, and Storey usually told him. After retiring from the NHL, Storey remained active in oldtimers' games, worked as a TV commentator, and was a popular raconteur.

Reader's Guide

Red Storey's significance lies in his rare achievement of excelling as both a player and official across multiple sports. As a football player, his three-touchdown performance in the 1938 Grey Cup game remains a notable feat. His NHL refereeing career, spanning 480 regular season games and seven consecutive Stanley Cup finals, was cut short by a controversial incident in 1959 that led to his resignation after an accusation of freezing on calls. Despite this, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1967, Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 1986, and the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 2001, and was made a Member of the Order of Canada in 1991. His legacy also includes his son Bob Storey, who won two Grey Cups. The athletic field at his former high school in Barrie was named in his honor.

Did You Know?

• Storey scored three touchdowns in twelve minutes in the fourth quarter of the 1938 Grey Cup game.
• He declined offers from the NFL's New York Giants and Chicago Bears to remain in Canada.
• He resigned as an NHL referee in 1959 after a report that the league president said he had 'frozen' on two calls.
• His son Bob Storey also won two Grey Cup championships.