1977-78 O-Pee-Chee 22 Mike Murphy Hockey Card (Front)
1977-78 O-Pee-Chee 22 Mike Murphy Hockey Card (Back)
1977-78 O-Pee-Chee NHL Checklist
Card Notes
A superb playmaker with good intelligence, he has a quick release on shots from the top of the faceoff circle for the Kings.
En Français
Cet ailier droit intelligent sait organizer le jeu. Il sait aussi sortir la rondelle lors des mises au jeu.
Details
After a decent junior career with the Toronto Marlboros, Mike Murphy was a second round pick by the New York Rangers at the 1970 NHL Amateur Draft. Before he could play a game with the Rangers, Murphy was traded to the St. Louis Blues on November 15, 1971 with Andre Dupont and Jack Egers for Gene Carr, Wayne Connelly and Jim Lorentz.
Prior to the trade, Mike put in an excellent first year of pro hockey with the Omaha Knights in the Central Hockey League. In 59 regular season games, he scored 27 goals and assisted on 47 for 71 points, earning rookie of the year honours. Under head coach Fred Shero, Murphy helped the Knights to a CHL championship, taking out the Dallas Black Hawks in the final.
The trade to St. Louis launched Murphy’s NHL career. As a rookie with the St. Louis Blues, Mike scored 20 goals in 63 games. However, by midway through the following season, he was headed back to the Big Apple. Murphy was traded back to the Rangers on March 1, 1973 for Ab DeMarco.
His National Hockey League career truly took off after New York dealt him to the Los Angeles Kings on November 30, 1973. He spent the rest of his NHL career with the Kings, scoring 20+ in five seasons and topping out with 30 goals in 1974-75. Murphy served as team captain from 1975-76 to 1980-81 and retired as a player after the 1982-83 season.