Rob Murphy (ice hockey)

Last updated
Rob Murphy
Born (1969-04-07) April 7, 1969 (age 55)
Hull, Quebec, Canada
Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight 205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Left
Played for Vancouver Canucks
Ottawa Senators
Los Angeles Kings
NHL draft 24th overall, 1987
Vancouver Canucks
Playing career 1988–2003

Robert Murphy (born April 7, 1969) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Murphy played parts of seven seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) between 1987 and 1994 with the Vancouver Canucks, Ottawa Senators, and Los Angeles Kings. Selected by the Canucks in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft, Murphy turned professional in 1988 and spent the next five seasons playing for the Canucks and their minor International Hockey League (IHL) affiliate. He followed that by stints with the Senators and Kings, going between the NHL and IHL until moving to the Deutsche Eishockey Liga in Germany in 1997, playing the last six years of his career there.

Contents

Early life

Murphy is from Aylmer, Quebec (now a sector of Gatineau) whose father worked for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Fluently bilingual in English and French, Murphy studied at a French college in Montreal. [1]

Playing career

Junior career

Murphy was selected by the Trois-Rivières Draveurs of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) in the third round of the 1986 QMJHL draft. [2] Before playing a game for the Draveurs, he was traded to the Laval Titan for center Paul Ouellette. [3] In his first season with Laval, the 1986–87 season, Murphy scored 35 goals and 89 points in 70 games. [4] He won the Michel Bergeron Trophy for top rookie forward in the QMJHL that season. [5] He began the 1987–88 QMJHL season with the Titan, appearing in 26 games, scoring 11 goals and 36 points. [4] However, on December 15, 1987 Murphy was traded to the Drummondville Voltigeurs for four players. [6] He finished the season with the Voltigeurs, scoring 16 goals and 44 points in 33 games. [4] In the 1988 QMJHL playoffs Murphy registered 4 goals and 19 points in 17 games, [4] The Voltigeurs finished second in the league, losing to the Hull Olympiques in the playoff final. Nevertheless, both teams from the QMJHL final made the 1988 Memorial Cup. The Voltigeurs were the first team eliminated in the four-team tournament. [7] In the 1988–89 season, Murphy only played in 26 games with the Voltigeurs, scoring 13 goals and 38 points. In four games during the playoffs, Murphy registered one goal and four points. [4]

Professional career

Murphy was the first pick of the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League (NHL), 24th overall, in the second round of 1987 NHL entry draft. The Washington Capitals had wanted to select him earlier in the draft but instead traded their first round selection to the Quebec Nordiques. A tall centre with toughness and a decent scoring touch, Murphy was held in very high regard by Canucks management who felt he could be the team's answer to Joel Otto, the star defensive center for the rival Calgary Flames. [1] He attended Vancouver's 1987 training camp, but was returned to the QMJHL at the start of the season. [8] [lower-alpha 1] He was recalled by the Canucks on January 28, 1988 after the Canucks suffered a series of injuries that left them shorthanded. [9] Murphy made his NHL debut the 1987–88 campaign, on January 29 in a 4–2 loss to the Hartford Whalers. [10] He appeared in five games for the Canucks, going scoreless [4] before being returned to the QMJHL for the second time that season in February. [11]

Murphy began the 1988–89 season with Vancouver, one of three promising rookies to make the team, the others being Trevor Linden and Todd Harkins. [12] Murphy registered his first NHL point, assisting on Brian Bradley's second period goal in a 6–5 win over the Edmonton Oilers on October 23, 1988. [13] His achievement was overshadowed by Jari Kurri of the Oilers scoring his 400th goal in the same game. [14] Murphy struggled to score and was moved to the left wing, where his play improved. However, concerns about his development grew. [15] Scratched for several games, he returned to the lineup on November 13, only to injure his shoulder crashing into the boards. [16] Diagnosed as a separated shoulder, he returned from the injury in late November and was assigned to Vancouver's affiliate in the International Hockey League (IHL), the Milwaukee Admirals, for two weeks for conditioning. [17] He appeared in five games for the Admirals, scoring two goals and four points. However, on December 12, Murphy was released to play for Team Canada at the World Junior Championships. [18] After the tournament he was returned to Drummondville of the QMJHL to finish the season. [19]

Murphy was sent to Milwaukee to begin 1989–90 season. [20] Murphy won the Gary F. Longman Memorial Trophy as the IHL's Rookie of the Year after scoring 24 goals and 71 points in 64 games for the Admirals. [4] [21] He was recalled by Vancouver on February 1 due to an injury to Brian Bradley. [22] He made his season debut in an 8–1 loss Winnipeg Jets on February 2. [23] In the next game against the New Jersey Devils on February 4, Murphy registered his first point of the season, assisting on Ronnie Stern's goal in the third period of the 4–2 victory. [24] Murphy scored his first NHL goal on Peter Sidorkiewicz of the Hartford Whalers, the game winner, in the third period of a 4–1 victory on February 9. [25] He was returned to Milwaukee in March [26] after playing in 12 games with the Canucks, scoring just the two points. [4]

The following season, Murphy started with Vancouver, scoring his first goal of the season in the season opening 3–2 loss to the Calgary Flames. [27] Murphy suffered a strained right knee in a collision with Shawn Cronin of the Winnipeg Jets on November 3 [28] and missed until late November with the injury. He was then assigned to Milwaukee for conditioning. [29] However, upon his return to the Canucks, he played in three of the next nine games and was sent down again to Milwaukee on December 27 to make room for the return of Petr Nedved to the lineup. [30] Murphy struggled in Milwaukee during his demotion. He was recalled by Vancouver again in January after injuries to Steve Bozek and Dave Capuano. [31] However, questions concerning his development and the development of other players drafted by Vancouver were used to criticize the management, namely the general manager Pat Quinn, of the Canucks. [32] [33] He appeared in 42 games for the Canucks that season, notching 5 goals and 6 points and played in 23 games for the Admirals, scoring 1 goal and 8 points. [4] In 1991–92, Murphy found himself back in the minors full-time, appearing in only 6 games for Vancouver.

Exposed in the 1992 NHL Expansion Draft, Murphy was claimed by the Ottawa Senators. As a member of the inaugural Senators squad, he set career highs by appearing in 44 games and recording 10 points, but again could not establish himself as an NHL regular. Released by Ottawa, he signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Kings, where he would play his final 8 NHL games in the 1993–94 season.

After leaving the Los Angeles organization, Murphy spent two seasons with the Fort Wayne Komets of the IHL before moving to Germany in 1997 to sign for SB Rosenheim of the DEL. He would spend six seasons in Germany, the last three with the Hannover Scorpions, before retiring in 2003.

International play

Murphy was selected to represent Canada at the 1989 World Junior Championships. He played in seven games, scoring one goal. Murphy scored the one goal short-handed in the third period of the first game against Norway. Canada finished fourth in the tournament. [34]

Personal life

After his playing career was over, Murphy was employed as a professional ice hockey scout beginning in 2007, and served as chief pro hockey scout for the Senators until April 2024. [35]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season TeamLeagueGP G A Pts PIM GPGAPtsPIM
1985–86Outaouais FrontaliersQMAAA4117335047—————
1986–87 Laval Titan QMJHL 70355489861434715
1987–88 Vancouver Canucks NHL 50002—————
1987–88 Laval TitanQMJHL2611253682—————
1987–88 Drummondville Voltigeurs QMJHL3316284441174151945
1988–89 Vancouver CanucksNHL80112—————
1988–89 Drummondville VoltigeursQMJHL2613253816413420
1988–89 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 842641135834
1989–90 Vancouver CanucksNHL121120—————
1989–90 Milwaukee AdmiralsIHL6424477187626812
1990–91 Vancouver CanucksNHL425169040002
1990–91 Milwaukee AdmiralsIHL2317848—————
1991–92 Vancouver CanucksNHL60116—————
1991–92 Milwaukee AdmiralsIHL7326386414150332
1992–93 Ottawa Senators NHL44371030—————
1992–93 New Haven Senators AHL268122028—————
1993–94 Los Angeles Kings NHL801122—————
1993–94 Phoenix Roadrunners IHL72233457101—————
1994–95 Phoenix RoadrunnersIHL20001020110
1995–96 Fort Wayne Komets IHL8224527610751238
1996–97 Fort Wayne KometsIHL359162540—————
1997–98 Starbulls Rosenheim DEL 449243368—————
1998–99 EV Landshut DEL521430447730118
1999–00 Eisbären Berlin DEL468182689—————
2000–01 Hannover Scorpions DEL599364510162246
2001–02 Hannover ScorpionsDEL6011263740—————
2002–03 Hannover ScorpionsDEL510151569—————
2003–04 Saint-Jean Mission QSMHL 4553439221704410
DEL totals3125114920044421491320
NHL totals1259122115240002

International

YearTeamEventGPGAPtsPIM
1989 Canada WJC 71018
Junior totals71018

Notes

  1. ↑ The source states he was returned to the Laval Voisins, but the Laval team changed their name to the Laval Titan the previous season.

Citations

  1. 1 2 Beamish, Mike (June 15, 1987). "Big centre is Canucks' first choice" . Vancouver Sun. p. 13. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ "QMJHL Draft" . Ottawa Citizen. June 2, 1986. p. 24. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ Mayoh, Rick (October 1, 1986). "Rich Won't Get Richer" . Ottawa Citizen. p. 27. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Rob Murphy". Hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  5. ↑ Wigge 1989, p. 210.
  6. ↑ Zurkowsky, Herb (December 16, 1987). "Bisons' Lemay takes one for team" . Montreal Gazette. p. 23. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ Lapp & Macauley 1997, pp. 232–233.
  8. ↑ "Transactions" . The Standard. October 5, 1987. p. 21. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Puck Patter" . Vancouver Sun. January 29, 1988. p. 33. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ Pap, Elliott (January 30, 1988). "Canucks in hunt for top prospect" . Vancouver Sun. p. 85. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ Beamish, Mike (February 8, 1988). "Still no deal for Brodeur" . Vancouver Sun. p. 10. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ Beamish, Mike (October 6, 1988). "New season an iffy ordeal for Canucks" . p. 16. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "Edmonton Oilers 5 – 6 Vancouver Canucks". National Hockey League. October 23, 1988. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  14. ↑ "Edmonton Oilers history: Jari Kurri scores 400th career NHL goal, Oct. 23, 1988". Edmonton Journal. October 23, 2016. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  15. ↑ Beamish, Mike (October 28, 1988). "Murphy's age keeping him with Canucks" . Vancouver Sun. p. 70. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ Beamish, Mike (November 14, 1988). "Canuck coach calls Lemieux 'cowardly'" . Vancouver Sun. p. 17. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  17. ↑ "Puck Patter" . Vancouver Sun. November 29, 1988. p. 20. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ "Juniors beckon" . The Province. December 13, 1988. p. 43. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  19. ↑ Keating, Jack (January 6, 1989). "Probert opts for right to be silent" . The Province. p. 47. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  20. ↑ Ullrich, Lowell (October 3, 1989). "Canucks get Coxe to box" . The Province. p. 47. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  21. ↑ Donohoe, Bob (April 11, 1990). "IHL names Eagles' Glynn an All-Star" . Salt Lake Tribune. p. 31. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  22. ↑ "Scouting Report" . Vancouver Sun. February 2, 1990. p. 44. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  23. ↑ "Vancouver Canucks 1 – 8 Winnipeg Jets". National Hockey League. February 2, 1990. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  24. ↑ "New Jersey Devils 2 – 4 Vancouver Canucks". National Hockey League. February 4, 1990. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  25. ↑ Beamish, Mike (February 10, 1990). "Old warhorse sparks three-game streak" . Vancouver Sun. p. 22. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  26. ↑ "Canucks vs. Capitals" . The Province. March 16, 1990. p. 74. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  27. ↑ "Canucks fall short" . The Province. October 5, 1990. p. 61. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  28. ↑ "Canucks' notes and quotes" . Vancouver Sun. November 5, 1990. p. 24. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  29. ↑ Luba, Frank (November 21, 1990). "Physical 'Hawks in town" . The Province. p. 66. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  30. ↑ "Game Notes" . The Province. December 28, 1990. p. 44. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  31. ↑ Jamieson, Jim (January 25, 1991). "Murphy's law means another shot for Rob" . The Province. p. 59. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  32. ↑ Robson 2015, p. 253.
  33. ↑ Gallagher, Tony (January 27, 1991). "Draft betraying Canucks" . The Province. p. 99. Retrieved July 24, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  34. ↑ Podnieks 1998, p. 194, 199, 204.
  35. ↑ Garrioch, Bruce (April 6, 2024). "The Breakdown: Ottawa Senators officially eliminated from playoffs with loss to Devils". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved April 13, 2024.

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References

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