Don Murdoch

Donald Walter Murdoch (born October 25, 1956 in Cranbrook, British Columbia) is a retired former professional ice hockey player. After a standout junior career with the Medicine Hat Tigers, Murdoch made the New York Rangers as a 20-year-old and had an impressive rookie scoring 56 points in 59 games his rookie season. A torn Achilles tendon ended his season in February.

In the offseason in 1977 after his first season, Murdoch was caught by customs agents in Toronto with 4.5 grams of cocaine stashed in his socks. He was suspended by the league and later admitted to having a drinking and drug problem. He played 320 career games in the NHL but never regained the form of his first season, and retired after stops with the Edmonton Oilers and Detroit Red Wings. Murdoch had a reputation as a partier since his rookie year, and was once even romantically linked with Margaret Trudeau.

After his playing career, Murdoch worked as a scout for the Tampa Bay Lightning, under general manager Phil Esposito.

Legacy

In the book 100 Ranger Greats (John Wiley & Sons, 2009) by Russ Cohen, John Halligan and Adam Raider, the authors ranked Murdoch No. 99 on the all-time list of New York Rangers.

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1974–75	Medicine Hat Tigers	WCHL		70	82	59	141	83		5	1	5	6	15
1975–76	Medicine Hat Tigers	WCHL		70	88	77	165	202		7	4	3	7	23
1976–77	New York Rangers	NHL		59	32	24	56	47		—	—	—	—	—
1977–78	New York Rangers	NHL		66	27	28	55	41		3	1	3	4	4
1978–79	New York Rangers	NHL		40	15	21	36	6		18	7	5	12	12
1979–80	New York Rangers	NHL		56	23	19	42	16		—	—	—	—	—
1979–80	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		10	5	2	7	4		3	2	0	2	0
1980–81	Wichita Wind	CHL		22	15	10	25	48		18	17	7	24	24
1980–81	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		40	10	9	19	18		—	—	—	—	—
1981–82	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		24	11	13	24	24		4	5	0	5	14
1981–82	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		49	9	13	22	23		—	—	—	—	—
1982–83	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		35	10	12	22	19		—	—	—	—	—
1983–84	Montana Magic	CHL		17	10	10	20	2		—	—	—	—	—
1983–84	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL		59	26	20	46	19		—	—	—	—	—
1984–85	Muskegon Lumberjacks	IHL		32	18	13	31	4		16	6	3	9	26
1985–86	Muskegon Lumberjacks	IHL		12	4	4	8	0		—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	Indianapolis Checkers	IHL		11	4	3	7	4		—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	Toledo Goaldiggers	IHL		37	15	23	38	8		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				320	121	116	237	155		24	10	8	18	16

See also

• List of players with 5 or more goals in an NHL game

External links

• Don Murdoch's career stats at The Internet Hockey Database

References

Preceded by Wayne Dillon

New York Rangers first round draft pick 1976

Succeeded by Lucien DeBlois