Mike Murphy (ice hockey, born 1950)

Michael John Murphy (born September 12, 1950) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League for 13 years for the St. Louis Blues, New York Rangers and the Los Angeles Kings and has been assistant and head coach in the NHL for the Los Angeles Kings, Ottawa Senators, Vancouver Canucks, Toronto Maple Leafs and the New York Rangers. Murphy also played for Team Canada, winning a bronze medal in 1978, and coached Team Canada, International Hockey League (IHL). Murphy is presently Senior Vice President of the NHL, hockey operations.

Mike Murphy
Murphy with the St. Louis Blues in 1971
Born (1950-09-12) September 12, 1950 (age 74)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Height 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight 180 lb (82 kg; 12 st 12 lb)
Position Right wing
Shot Right
Played for St. Louis Blues
New York Rangers
Los Angeles Kings
National team  Canada
NHL draft 25th overall, 1970
New York Rangers
Playing career 1971–1983
Mike Murphy with the Team Canada in 1979

Playing career

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As a youth, he and teammate Peter Sullivan played in the 1963 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey from North York.[1]

In the National Hockey League, he played for the St. Louis Blues, New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings. Murphy was captain of the Los Angeles Kings for 7 years and played in Los Angeles for 13 years. He played for Team Canada (bronze medal winner) and was an assistant coach for Team Canada.[citation needed] Murphy was selected to play on the NHL All-Star team in 1980. He has career totals in the NHL of 231 goals, and 318 assists for 556 total points in 831 games played.

Coaching career

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Upon retiring from hockey with the Los Angeles Kings, he became their head coach. Murphy went on to be assistant coach of the Vancouver Canucks, Ottawa Senators, and New York Rangers. Murphy was promoted from assistant coach of the Vancouver Canucks to head coach of their farm team, the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League (AHL). Murphy left Milwaukee for an assistant coach position with the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team. Murphy was then promoted to be the 24th head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

NHL vice-president

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As NHL vice-president of hockey operations, Murphy was forced to make a tough call during game three of the first round of the 2010 Stanley Cup. Murphy disallowed what was first ruled as a 3-4 goal on the ice for the Vancouver Canucks against Murphy's former team, the Los Angeles Kings. The incident is one of many that has called for greater NHL transparency from the public.[2] The official ruling stated that "Video Review was used to determine whether the puck was kicked into the net by Vancouver's Daniel Sedin with a kicking motion. Upon review, it was determined that the puck was propelled into the net by a kicking motion. This was not a deflection. The direction the puck was moving and the force of the skate were the determining factors in concluding 'no goal'".[3] According to rule 49.2 of the NHL, "A puck that is directed into the net by an attacking player’s skate shall be a legitimate goal as long as no distinct kicking motion is evident."[4] Later, in an interview with CBC Hockey Night in Canada, Murphy admitted that the puck was not kicked in a "distinct kicking motion", as the official NHL rules require, yet Murphy maintained his position on the judgement.[3]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1968–69 Toronto Marlboros OHA-Jr. 44 16 23 39 53 6 1 4 5 6
1969–70 Toronto Marlboros OHA-Jr. 54 23 27 50 68 6 7 6 13 16
1970–71 Omaha Knights CHL 59 24 47 71 37 11 4 8 12 17
1971–72 Omaha Knights CHL 8 1 4 5 12
1971–72 St. Louis Blues NHL 63 20 23 43 19 11 2 3 5 6
1972–73 St. Louis Blues NHL 64 18 27 45 48
1972–73 New York Rangers NHL 15 4 4 8 5 10 0 0 0 0
1973–74 New York Rangers NHL 16 2 1 3 0
1973–74 Los Angeles Kings NHL 53 13 16 29 38 5 0 4 4 0
1974–75 Los Angeles Kings NHL 78 30 38 68 44 3 3 0 3 4
1975–76 Los Angeles Kings NHL 80 26 42 68 61 9 1 4 5 6
1976–77 Los Angeles Kings NHL 76 25 36 61 58 9 4 9 13 4
1977–78 Los Angeles Kings NHL 72 20 36 56 48 2 0 0 0 0
1978–79 Los Angeles Kings NHL 64 16 29 45 38 2 0 1 1 0
1979–80 Los Angeles Kings NHL 80 27 22 49 29 4 1 0 1 2
1980–81 Los Angeles Kings NHL 68 16 23 39 54 1 1 0 1 0
1981–82 Los Angeles Kings NHL 28 5 10 15 20 10 2 1 3 32
1982–83 Los Angeles Kings NHL 74 16 11 27 52
NHL totals 831 238 318 556 514 66 13 23 36 54

Coaching record

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Team Year Regular season Post season
G W L T Pts Finish Result
LAK 1986–87 38 13 21 4 (70) 4th in Smythe Lost in First Round
LAK 1987–88 27 7 16 4 (68) (fired)
TOR 1996–97 82 30 44 8 68 6th in Central Missed playoffs
TOR 1997–98 82 30 43 9 69 6th in Central Missed playoffs
Total 229 80 124 27

References

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  1. ^ "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
  2. ^ Transparency needed on Canucks' disallowed goal | CBC Sports
  3. ^ a b NHL's explanation for disallowing Daniel Sedin's goal - latimes.com
  4. ^ Official Rules - Rule 49: Kicking - NHL.com - Rules
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Preceded by Los Angeles Kings captain
19751981
Succeeded by
Preceded by Head coach of the Los Angeles Kings
1986–1987
Succeeded by
Preceded by Head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs
1996–1998
Succeeded by