Player to Coach, Rob Murray Has Seen it All
Rob Murray went from being a very late Petes draft pick to having a long career in professional hockey.
Murray was drafted 221st overall in the 15th round of the 1984 OHL draft. After a couple of other Petes draft picks went to college, he got his opportunity. He shared a full billet house with Randy Burridge and Shawn Evans and slept on the couch during his rookie year.
Murray was known for his more physical game and had 587 penalty minutes during his time with the Petes.
“It’s a great place,” said Murray. “There are so many fond memories every time I start to talk about it. When I think about it on any given day it really feels like it was yesterday.”
Murray’s play caught NHL attention and he was drafted 61st overall by the Washington Capitals. His time spent in the Capitals organization was spent mainly between their minor league affiliates the Fort Wayne Komets and the Baltimore Skipjacks.
In 1991, he was traded to the Winnipeg Jets (now, the Arizona Coyotes) playing most of his career with the Jets’ AHL affiliates, the Moncton Hawks, and Springfield Falcons. Murray also spent time with the Philadelphia Phantoms, St. John Flames, and Hamilton Bulldogs, who were then an AHL affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers, not to be confused with the OHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs. The season Murray spent in Hamilton was following the death of his father, so he liked that he was able to stay at home with his mother as they only lived half an hour away from Hamilton.
Murray holds the record for the second most penalty minutes in the AHL with 2,940 and played the seventh most AHL games earning him an induction into the AHL Hall of Fame in 2017. The Falcons retired his jersey in 2007.
“I kind of saw it all and I enjoyed every minute of it,” said Murray.
After retiring from playing hockey in 2003, Murray got a job as the assistant coach of the Providence Bruins and was named the head coach in 2009. He earned a Stanley Cup ring when the Boston Bruins won in 2011.
He then went on to become the head coach of the Alaska Aces of the ECHL winning a championship with the team in the 2013-14 season. About halfway through the 2016-17 season, the Aces let Murray know that they would not be able to sustain the franchise after the season.
Murray was lucky enough to find a new job that summer as the head coach of the Tulsa Oilers of the ECHL.
Murray is still the head coach of the Oilers and being from a smaller professional league, he does a lot more than a typical AHL or NHL head coach would do. He also serves as the Oilers Director of Hockey Operations which includes, trades, managing the salary cap, organizing housing, and recruitment. The ECHL does not have video or goalie coaches like the NHL, so Murray and his assistant coach, Scott Dutertre, are responsible for all coaching duties.
“You’re a jack of all trades at this level,” said Murray.” You know I suppose if I had to do it over again, I would never turn down starting my coaching career in the AHL. It’s a great place to really learn how to coach and manage. There’s so much more to the job here than both at the AHL and NHL levels.”
Rob and his wife Carolyn have been married for over 30 years and have five children together, three daughters, Taylor (27), Quinn (19), and Mackenzie (9), and two sons, Zachary (21) and Brendan (15).
