John Garrison attended the local Country Day School in West Newton and as a school boy there had the unparalled record of playing six years on the varsity! He then went on to Harvard where he was a regular on the Freshman Team and then a varsity regular for three seasons at center ice. Garrison was adept at any forward position as well as on defense.

Professional hockey also sought out Garrison, as it did John Chase before him, but like Chase, Garrison preferred to stake out a career in the business world. Amateur and international hockey, however, continued to have a demand on his hockey talents. During the 1930s he led several amateur teams to the United States national title. During these years he gained the reputation as one of the finest amateur players in the nation.

Garrison played defense for the 1932 United States Olympic Team that capture a silver medal at Lake Placid. In 1933 he scored an unassisted overtime goal against Canada to give the United States a 2-1 victory and its first world championship at Prague, Czechoslovakia. He then went on to captain the 1936 Olympic Team which won a bronze medal at Garmish and to coach the 1948 Olympic Team.