John Matchefts

Peter John "Johnny" Matchefts ( born June 18, 1931 in Eveleth, Minnesota, † November 10, 2013 in Colorado Springs ) was an American professional ice hockey player and coach. He won with the U.S. national team at the Olympic Winter Games 1956, the silver medal and is a member of the United States Hockey Hall of Fame.

Matchefts played in the hockey team of Eveleth High School, where he was one of the outstanding players and his team won three State Championships in a row. At 16 he came to the preselection of the U.S. team for the Olympics in 1948. After his graduation, he went to the University of Michigan. There he won with the Wolverines three times the NCAA championship. 1951 and 1953 he was elected team in the All-American First in the final tournament ( Frozen Four), in addition he was MVP of the 1953 tournament. In his college career, he scored a total of 57 goals and had 74 assists. Subsequently, he served in the Marines. Meanwhile, he participated with the U.S. national team at the World Cup in 1955 and at the Winter Olympics 1956 in Cortina d' Ampezzo. In winning the Silver Medal he scored in seven games two goals and three assists. He started at various high schools in Minnesota to work as a coach. In 1966 he took over as coach of the hockey team of the Colorado College. After disputes over his salary, he left the team in 1972 and assistant coach at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. Two years later he was appointed as successor to Vic Heyliger new head coach of the team. Until his retirement in 1985, he pointed to the record of 154-150-6 games in eleven seasons.

Matchefts was married and has a daughter.