Ottawa Senators Article: Murray likes what he sees with Senators
June 14, 2004

Posted by: Bob Howard
Credit: Ottawa Senators.com

Murray likes what he sees with Senators

After surveying the team he’s inherited, new Ottawa Senators coach Bryan Murray likes what he sees.

“We will be a very seriously competitive hockey team,” the 61-year-old Shawville native says. “Today there is 10 or 12 teams that think they have a chance to win the Stanley Cup and we have to be one of them.

“I think the core is here, there’s a high skill level. It’s a matter of adding a couple of pieces (and) to give direction.”

Murray knows a thing or two about building a team. He just finished his 23rd straight season of involvement in the NHL at various levels, including 14 as coach.

He was behind the bench for 81/2 seasons with the Washington Capitals and had a hand in establishing the Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, the team he resigned his post as senior vice-president and general manager of to take the Senators’ job.

He’s looking forward to the task at hand — helping Ottawa live up to its aspirations.

“I wanted very badly to come back and coach and come back to Hockey Country, where hockey really means something,” he says. “After 25 years of moving my family around the hockey world, it was fair to have a home base. This was an unbelievable opportunity for that to happen.”

Murray ranks sixth all-time in games coached with 1,057 and is seventh all-time in wins with 513 and won the Jack Adams Award in 1983-84 as the league’s coach of the year while with the Capitals.

He becomes the fifth head coach in modern Senators’ history after Martin, Roger Neilson (who coached a couple of games in 2001-02), Dave Allison and Rick Bowness.

Ottawa interviewed several candidates for the job before deciding on Murray, who received a call from the Mighty Ducks during the world championship tournament to ask whether he'd like to speak to the Senators.

In the end, it was Murray’s desire and passion to win his first Stanley Cup that put him over the top.

“We did have a long list. We went out and talked to people who had different philosophies and they were all good,” Senators GM John Muckler says. “(Murray’s) teams always played hard and they were good-skating hockey clubs. He said to me, ‘I want to win a Stanley Cup, I want that opportunity, and I think this is the best opportunity in the league for me to be able to do that.’

“He showed his sincerity by taking the gamble of stepping down (from Anaheim) and coming to Ottawa to coach the hockey club. I think the fit is going to be fantastic.”

Senators players are also thrilled at the prospect of renewing their drive to win a Stanley Cup.

“He brings a lot of intensity and experience. I’m excited,” centre Mike Fisher says.