Jeff Rotsch

Jeffrey John Rotsch (born July 22, 1950) is a retired ice hockey player and businessman. A native of Minneapolis, Minnesota, Rotsch received a BS degree in engineering from the University of Wisconsin in 1972 and an MBA degree in 1974 from the same institution.

Southwest High School
Rotsch captained his 1968 Southwest High School Team to the Minneapolis City Conference title with an undefeated conference season. The team won the Regional championship and went on to compete in the Minnesota State Hockey Tournament where they made it to the semifinals in 1968. He finished the season earning All City, All Region, and All State honors and was the highest scoring defenseman in the City Conference.

University of Wisconsin
Rotsch played 4 years of ice hockey at the University of Wisconsin and was co-captain of the 1972 team. That season he also led WCHA defensemen in points and was awarded All-American honors, becoming the second-ever All-American in UW history. During his collegiate career, Rotsch played in two Frozen Fours (1970, 1972) with the Badgers finishing in third place both years. In 1973, Rotsch served as an assistant coach under head coach Bob Johnson. That year the University of Wisconsin Men's Ice Hockey team won their first NCAA Hockey Championship.

NHL Draft
He was the first University of Wisconsin player as well as the first Minneapolis High School player to be drafted by the NHL. He was the 112th pick in the 1970 NHL draft and was drafted by the St. Louis Blues. His draft rights were later traded to the Oakland Seals in 1972.

Team USA
Rotsch was a member of the 1972 US National Team which competed in the World Hockey Tournament in Bucharest, Romania. Rotsch also played on and co-captained the 1975 US Team in the World Championships in Munich and Dusseldorf, Germany.

Business career
Upon graduation from the University of Wisconsin with his MBA, Rotsch turned down the offer to play professional hockey and chose to start his business career. He started his career in Marketing at General Mills, Inc. in 1974 and spent 37 years at the food giant. During his tenure he served as President of numerous divisions at the company including Big G Cereal, Snacks, Betty Crocker, and Meals. In his final 12 years he was responsible for running Worldwide Sales for GMI with a total salesforce of 10,000

Rotsch has served on a number of boards including Minnesota Public Radio, Family and Children’s Services, and the University of Wisconsin Business School where he served as Chairman for four years.

Awards & Recognition
In 2002, Rotsch was named a University of Wisconsin Distinguished Alumni. He has also been inducted into the Southwest High School Hall of Fame, the University of Wisconsin Hockey Hall of Fame, and, most recently into the Minneapolis Hockey Hall of Fame in 2019.

Personal life
Jeff and his wife Chris currently reside in Naples, Florida and are parents to two children, Molly & Andrew.