1957-58 Topps 29 Ron Murphy Hockey Card (Front)
1957-58 Topps 29 Ron Murphy Hockey Card (Back)
Card Notes
Ron grew up in Rangers’ farm system, starring for Memorial Cup winner in Guelph. Splitting time between N.Y. and Providence last season, he was set back by injuries.
Details
First off, on the back of the card Topps has his name as Robert Murphy. At first, I though maybe this was an error since, after all, Ron is not the short form for Robert. However, his full name was Robert Ronald Murphy.
With the Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters in 1951-52, Ron tied for second in the OHA Junior A with 58 goals, four behind leader Orville Tessier of the Kitchener Greenshirts. His 116 points were good for fourth in the race for the Eddie Powers Trophy.
Guelph finished second in the ten team league, six points behind the Toronto Marlboros. However, it was the Biltmores that came out on top in the playoffs, earning the J. Ross Robertson Trophy. They then took out the Montreal Junior Canadiens to represent Eastern Canada at the Memorial Cup final. Guelph captured the championship by beating the Regina Pats.
Joining Murphy on that championship were future NHLers Andy Bathgate, Lou Fontinato, Harry Howell, Dean Prentice and Ron Stewart.
Over his NHL career, Ron Murphy played for all four U.S. based Original 6 teams: New York Rangers, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins. However, it was with Chicago that he had his best hockey. Murphy helped the Hawks to a Stanley Cup championship in 1960-61.
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