BIRTHPLACE: Eureka, Utah

BORN: January 16, 1901

DIED: July 27, 1988

TEAMS/ASSOCIATIONS: United States Figure Skating Association Hall of Fame, the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame, the National Inventors Hall of Fame

Although he never laced up the skates himself, Frank Zamboni's legacy lives at nearly every hockey rink in the country.

Born in Eureka, Utah, in 1901, Zamboni and his brother, Lawrence, moved to Southern California in 1920. After opening an ice plant for manufacturing block ice, Zamboni envisioned a new way to keep his business open after the growth of the home refrigerator.

Along with his brother and cousin, Pete, the trio built a skating rink in 1940 and nine years later, Zamboni received the patent for the world's first self-propelled ice resurfacing machine.

Zamboni brought his machines to the 1960 Olympic Winter Games in Squaw Valley, Calif., and at the 1994 Olympic Winter Games in Lillehammer, Norway, all ice resurfacing machines were Zambonis.

In 2002, Zamboni was named the "Official Ice Resurfacer of the NHL," and in 2007, the 8,500th Zamboni was produced. A member of the United States Figure Skating Association Hall of Fame (2000), the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame (2006) and the National Inventors Hall of Fame (2007), Zamboni passed away in 1988.