I’m a distinctive-looking potlicker, I guess, but there’s nothing special about me. Why me? I’m just a snot-nosed, scrawny little guy. “Why? That’s something I’m continually asking myself. “I just walk down the street and people who weren’t even born when I was working as a trainer say to me, ‘Hiya, Bearcat!’ I go to an event and I’m swamped,” he wrote. Murray pondered his celebrity status in his memoir, co-authored by George Johnson and released last year. While so much of his work was done behind the scenes, where he wrapped knees and shoulders, stitched up cuts and massaged muscles and occasionally egos, Murray was as easily recognizable to Flames fans as the leading scorer, starting netminder or most feared tough guy. “So really, he becomes the only trainer with a plus in National Hockey League history.” “He races out, the plays goes on and we score a goal and now he’s hiding behind Vernie, trying to get back to the bench, because he knows Crispie (Terry Crisp) is going to kill him if we get the goal taken away. “There’s a lot of Bearcat stories but the one that is probably the most famous of all is when he jumped on the ice in the middle of the play after Vernie got knocked down in L.A.,” said McDonald, also a co-captain for that championship crew. During the Stanley Cup run in 1989, you might recall him leaping over the boards, without waiting for a whistle, and hustling to check on Mike Vernon, who was down in his crease after being decked by Bernie Nicholls of the Los Angeles Kings.įlames trainer Bearcat Murray (at right) checks on young goalie Mike Vernon in this photo from 1989. He was as quick with a joke as he was while sprinting to tend to an injured player - and he’d installed spikes on the bottom of his shoes to ensure he could skedaddle. Murray, who was selected by PHATS/SPHEM - the Professional Hockey Athletic Trainers Society and the Society of Professional Hockey Equipment Managers - as a unanimous inductee to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009, will be remembered for his positive attitude, boundless energy and the passion and pride that showed in his work and his commitment to bettering the community. “You never want to see anybody go, but he had a sparkle in his eye every time I saw him, from the first time in September of 1980 up until the last time I saw him, pre-COVID. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Manage Print Subscription / Tax Receipt.
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