Nam Y. Huh / AP

William W. Wirtz was chairman of the Board of Governors of the National Hockey League for 18 years and helped negotiate the merger of the NHL and the World Hockey Association in the late 1970's.

updated 7:49 p.m. ET Sept. 26, 2007

CHICAGO - William W. Wirtz was a philanthropist and family man who owned the Chicago Blackhawks through years of sweeping changes in the NHL and was chairman of the league’s board of governors for nearly two decades.

Amassing a fortune in real estate, liquor distribution, banking and other enterprises, he was also a tough bargainer, given the nickname “Dollar Bill” for his tightfisted approach to contracts for big-name players.

Wirtz died Wednesday at age 77. The team’s Web site said he lost a battle with cancer in Evanston.

Wirtz was remembered for both his contributions to the sport and charity and for his stubborn management style that included a refusal to televise the team’s home games, infuriating fans, many of whom had stopped watching altogether the last several years.

Wirtz’s family purchased the team in 1954 and he became team president in 1966, a position he held for 41 years.

Asked in a 2005 TV interview about his legacy, Wirtz said:

“I have been remembered very nicely in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame and the National Hockey League Hall of Fame. So I don’t need any more honors than them. The only way I want to be remembered is not by the public, but just by my family and friends. That I put more back on this earth than I took out. That’s my reputation and I’m gonna stick with it.”

Wirtz helped negotiate the merger of the NHL and the World Hockey Association in the late 1970’s.

“Bill Wirtz was a giant presence in a giant city his beloved Chicago and an even greater presence in the National Hockey League,” NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement. “His 41 years as President of the Blackhawks and 18 years as Chairman of the Board leave an incomparable legacy of contributions to the game and to the League.”

Together with Chicago Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf, Wirtz backed the construction of the United Center, which replaced the Chicago Stadium, the longtime home for Blackhawks.

When Chicago Stadium was knocked down by the wrecking ball, Wirtz came to the parking lot, stood, watched and wept because the building had been a part of his family for so long.

But the move across the street for the 1994-95 season has not been a transition of success for the once perennial playoff team — especially on the ice.

There has been constant shuffling in coaches and general managers, but still the Blackhawks have not won a Stanley Cup championship since 1961 and have missed the playoffs eight times in the last nine seasons. Attendance last season was 12,700 in the 20,500-seat United Center.

“In spite of the last decade, he was upbeat, and positive, and caring, the same way he was when we were successful,” general manager Dale Tallon said Wednesday. “He never changed, and that tells you what kind of a man he was. I loved him like a father.”

At the United Center, the retired numbers of Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita, Tony Esposito, Glenn Hall and Denis Savard hang high above the ice.

One of the NHL’s greatest scorers, Hull left in 1972 and went to Winnipeg of the WHA for a big contract when the Blackhawks would not meet his salary demands.

In recent years, Chicago lost such high-caliber players as Jeremy Roenick, Tony Amonte, Ed Belfour and Chris Chelios.

More news

Bruce Bennett / Getty Images

Heading to the Cup finals

Adam Henrique scored off a wild scramble in front early in OT and the New Jersey Devils defeated the New York Rangers 3-2 to advance to their first Stanley Cup finals since '03. The new Eastern champs will face LA next.

NBC Sports

Highlights: OT goal delivers Devils to Cup finals

  Check out highlights as the New Jersey Devils advanced to the Stanley Cup finals by defeating the New York Rangers, 3-2, in overtime.

Headlines

• Label

PHT: Rangers' gas tank hits empty | Rally falls short

NHL.com: Torts praises Rangers after season ends

PHT vote: Devils or Kings to win Stanley Cup finals?

PHT: Burning questions coming out of Devils' win

PHT Extra: Kings will face toughest foe yet

Gagne back at practice, enjoying Kings' success

PHT: Kings making Lombardi look like a genius

PHT: History doesn't bode well for Kings in finals