David Branch


David Branch is a Canadian hockey administrator and builder, with a long involvement in junior ice hockey. He has served as commissioner of the Ontario Hockey League since September 15, 1979, and was president of the Canadian Hockey League from 1996 to 2019.

Early life

Branch played NCAA hockey while attending the University of Massachusetts Amherst on a scholarship. After graduating, he moved to Whitby, Ontario, and became involved in coaching minor hockey with the Whitby Wildcats organization, and hockey camps run by Wren Blair and Jim Gregory.

Executive career

Branch served as secretary-manager of the Ontario Hockey Association from 1974 to 1977. He was hired by Gord Renwick in 1978 to become the new executive director of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association for the retiring Gordon Juckes. He served in that role until 1979.
Branch played a role in the founding of the Ontario Hockey League, by negotiating the split of its predecessor, the OMJHL from the OHA. He became commissioner of the OMJHL in 1979, and the independent OHL in 1980. Under his management, the OHL has grown from 12 teams to 20, and has become a marketable television commodity. Branch became president of the CHL in 1996. During his tenure, the CHL All-Star Challenge evolved into the annual CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game, and the CHL Canada/Russia Series was created.
Branch helped develop a scholarship program that affords all players one year of post-secondary education per season played in the league. Branch has advocated for player safety, anti-violence, and mental health. He was instrumental in adopting rules to reduce the number of fights in the OHL. Branch was part of introducing a blindside hit rule in the OHL, and aims to have all members of the CHL introduce similar rules.
On July 30, 2019, the CHL announced Dan MacKenzie will become the new full-time president as of September 2019, taking over for Branch who will continue as the OHL commissioner.

Honours and awards

Branch is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame selection committee. He was honoured with the Order of Hockey in Canada in 2016, and he was inducted into the Whitby Sports Hall of Fame as a builder in 2017.

Personal life

He is the father of Barclay Branch, the general manager of the Flint Firebirds.