Kirk Muller

Kirk Muller
Born	(1966-02-08) February 8, 1966 Kingston, ON, CAN
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb)
Position	Center
Shot	Left
Played for	New Jersey Devils Montreal Canadiens New York Islanders Toronto Maple Leafs Florida Panthers Dallas Stars
National team	Canada
NHL draft	2nd overall, 1984 New Jersey Devils
Playing career	1984–2003
Website	http://www.kirkmuller.com

Kirk Christopher Muller (born February 8, 1966) is a retired professional ice hockey wing who played in the National Hockey League for 19 seasons from 1984–85 until 2002–03. He was also the head coach of the National Hockey League's Carolina Hurricanes from 2011 to 2014. Since 2016, he's associate coach with the Montreal Canadiens, where he served as assistant coach from 2006 to 2011.

Playing career

Muller started his junior career with the Kingston Canadians of the Ontario Hockey League, but his most successful junior seasons were with the Guelph Platers. There was a dispute in 1984 between the Platers and the Canadian Olympic Team, who wanted Muller to play with them at the 1984 Winter Olympics. The Platers owner was upset over losing Muller for so much time, but eventually they came to an agreement and Muller played in the Olympics. He was drafted second overall by the New Jersey Devils in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft behind Mario Lemieux. "Captain Kirk" was the heart and soul of the Devils franchise, with his intensity and strong two-way play. However, New Jersey never became a serious Stanley Cup contender while Muller was with them, and he was traded along with Roland Melanson to the Montreal Canadiens for Stéphane Richer and Tom Chorske on September 20, 1991.

Muller quickly became a fan favourite in Montreal, and he helped them win the Stanley Cup in 1993. However, his time with the Canadiens was shorter than he would have liked, as he was shocked when he was traded to the New York Islanders during the 1994–95 NHL season. Initially, he was reluctant to report to the Islanders, then played a handful of games in an uninterested manner before team management decided that his poor attitude outweighed his potential contributions on the ice and barred him from the team. Eventually, they recalled him, but Muller refused to report, freeing the Islanders from their contractual obligations to pay him. Ultimately, Muller was traded at a discount to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Muller had his last 20 goal season with the Leafs the next season, but he was traded to the Florida Panthers as the Leafs fell out of the playoff picture.

Muller struggled in Florida, scoring just four goals in the whole 1998–99 NHL season. His last break came when he signed with the Dallas Stars in the middle of the 1999–2000 season. Even though his scoring touch of old almost completely evaporated, he still managed to be a strong role player with the Stars for four seasons and was part of the "grumpy old men" line that included Mike Keane and John MacLean. He retired at the end of the 2002–03 season.

Coaching career

Muller began his coaching career with the Queen's University Golden Gaels. In 2005-06, Muller was Head Coach of the Queen’s University Golden Gaels, in his hometown of Kingston, posting an 8-13-1-2 record in the Ontario University Athletics Conference.

Muller also held the title of Assistant Coach to Marc Habscheid with Team Canada, winning the gold medal at the 2005 Lotto Cup Tournament in Slovakia. In March 2006, he served as Assistant Coach to Greg Gilbert at the Under-18 World Championship.

Kirk Muller returned to the Montreal Canadiens organization on June 20, 2006, when he was named assistant coach of the Canadiens.

On June 27, 2011, the Nashville Predators announced that Muller had been hired as the head coach of their AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals.

On November 28, 2011, Muller became coach of the Carolina Hurricanes, taking over for Paul Maurice.

On May 5, 2014, Muller was relieved of coaching duties by the Carolina Hurricanes.

On May 13, 2014, Muller was signed by the St. Louis Blues as an assistant coach.

On June 2, 2016, the Montreal Canadiens organization rehired Muller as an associate coach.

Records

• New Jersey Devils franchise record for points in a single game (6 on Oct. 29, 1986)
• New Jersey Devils franchise record for assists in a single game (5 on Mar. 25, 1987)
• New Jersey Devils franchise record for points by a centre in a single season (94, 1987–88)

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1980–81	Kingston Voyageurs	MetJHL		42	17	37	54	5		—	—	—	—	—
1980–81	Kingston Canadians	OMJHL		2	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
1981–82	Kingston Canadians	OHL		67	12	39	51	27		4	5	1	6	4
1982–83	Guelph Platers	OHL		66	52	60	112	41		—	—	—	—	—
1983–84	Guelph Platers	OHL		49	31	63	94	27		—	—	—	—	—
1983–84	Team Canada	Nat-Tm		15	2	2	4	16		—	—	—	—	—
1984–85	New Jersey Devils	NHL		80	17	37	54	69		—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	New Jersey Devils	NHL		77	25	41	66	45		—	—	—	—	—
1986–87	New Jersey Devils	NHL		79	26	50	76	75		—	—	—	—	—
1987–88	New Jersey Devils	NHL		80	37	57	94	114		20	4	8	12	37
1988–89	New Jersey Devils	NHL		80	31	43	74	119		—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	New Jersey Devils	NHL		80	30	56	86	74		6	1	3	4	11
1990–91	New Jersey Devils	NHL		80	19	51	70	76		7	0	2	2	10
1991–92	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		78	36	41	77	86		11	4	3	7	31
1992–93	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		80	37	57	94	77		20	10	7	17	18
1993–94	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		76	23	34	57	96		7	6	2	8	4
1994–95	Montreal Canadiens	NHL		33	8	11	19	33		—	—	—	—	—
1994–95	New York Islanders	NHL		12	3	5	8	14		—	—	—	—	—
1995–96	New York Islanders	NHL		15	4	3	7	15		—	—	—	—	—
1995–96	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		36	9	16	25	42		6	3	2	5	0
1996–97	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		66	20	17	37	85		—	—	—	—	—
1996–97	Florida Panthers	NHL		10	1	2	3	4		5	1	2	3	4
1997–98	Florida Panthers	NHL		70	8	21	29	54		—	—	—	—	—
1998–99	Florida Panthers	NHL		82	4	11	15	49		—	—	—	—	—
1999–2000	Dallas Stars	NHL		47	7	15	22	24		23	2	3	5	18
2000–01	Dallas Stars	NHL		55	1	9	10	26		10	1	3	4	12
2001–02	Dallas Stars	NHL		78	10	20	30	28		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Dallas Stars	NHL		55	1	5	6	18		12	1	1	2	8
NHL totals				1349	357	602	959	1223		127	33	36	69	153

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1984	Canada	WJC		7	2	1	3	16
1984	Canada	Oly		6	2	1	3	0
1985	Canada	WC		10	2	2	4	12
1986	Canada	WC		9	4	3	7	12
1987	NHL All-Stars	RV-87		2	0	0	0	0
1987	Canada	WC		10	2	0	2	8
1989	Canada	WC		9	6	4	10	6
Senior totals				44	16	10	26	38

NHL coaching record

Team	Year	Regular Season						Post Season
		Games	Won	Lost	OT/SO	Points	Finish	Won	Lost	Result
CAR	2011-12	57	25	20	12	(62)	5th in Southeast Division	-	-	Failed To Qualify
CAR	2012-13	48	19	25	4	42	3rd in Southeast Division	-	-	Failed To Qualify
CAR	2013-14	82	36	35	11	83	7th in Metropolitan Division	-	-	Failed to Qualify
Total		187	80	80	27	.500	0 Division Championships	0	0	0 Stanley Cups

See also

• List of NHL players with 1000 games played

External links

• Kirk Muller career statistics at EliteProspects.com
• Kirk Muller career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
• Total Hockey (Second Edition), Editor - Dan Diamond, ISBN 1-892129-85-X
• Hockey Draft Central
• Kirk Muller Official Website