Neal Henderson (ice hockey)

O"Neal Henderson (born July 9, 1937) is the coach for the Fort Dupont Ice Hockey Club since 1978. Black players have mainly been on his team leading up to the 2020s. Before starting the Washington, D.C. team, Henderson was a hockey player before becoming a coach at Hill Air Force Base. Between the late 1990s to early 2000s, Henderson was the vice president for the NHL/USA Hockey Diversity Task Force. In 2005, he co-created the Hockey in the Hood tournament in Detroit. Outside of hockey, Henderson worked for the District of Columbia Department of Motor Vehicles while at Fort Dupont.

Henderson received the 2007 Wm. Thayer Tutt Award from USA Hockey and was nominated for the 2018 Willie O’Ree Community Hero Award held by the NHL. The Washington Capitals selected him to make multiple ceremonial first puck appearances during the late 2010s. In 2019, Henderson joined the United States Hockey Hall of Fame. With this honor, he was the "first black inductee and third person of color" to be picked.[1] Henderson was also selected to become part of the Washington DC Sports Hall of Fame in 2021.

  1. ^ Douglas, William (December 9, 2019). "Henderson made difference on way to U.S. Hall of Fame". National Hockey League. Retrieved November 10, 2023.