Joe Murphy (Mental Health Issues)

Joseph Patrick Murphy (born October 16, 1967) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who was the number one pick in the 1986 NHL Entry Draft by the Detroit Red Wings.

Detroit Red Wings

With their first overall selection by the Detroit Red Wings in the NHL’s 1986 Entry Draft, Murphy became the first NCAA college player to be selected first overall. In his first season with Detroit, Murphy saw action in only five games, spending almost the entirety of that season with the Red Wings AHL affiliate the Adirondack Red Wings; this was due in large part that Detroit was particularly deep at center with Steve Yzerman and Adam Oates centering the first and second lines.

The following season Murphy played 50 games with the big club after transitioning to play right wing. By 1988-1989, Murphy was back in the minors with Adirondack after playing in 26 games with the parent club. Murphy found his game while in Adirondack, scoring 31 Goals and 35 Assists in just 47 games and helping Adirondack capture the Calder Cup. The Next season 1989-1990, Murphy began the campaign with Detroit, but after only nine games, he was shipped to the Edmonton Oilers in a blockbuster trade that saw six players changing postal codes. Edmonton received Adam Graves, Petr Klima, and Jeff Sharples, Detroit landed Jimmy Carson and Kevin McClelland, and some swampland in Florida LOL. Thanks for the 1990 Stanley Cup Detroit.

Edmonton Oilers

Beginning a new chapter in his career, Murphy joined Adam Graves and Martin Gelinas on what became known as the “Kid Line” as all three were 21 years of age or under. In the 1990 playoffs, that year is where he came into his own as a bonafide scoring threat, registering 14 points in 22 playoff games and helping the Oilers defeat the Boston Bruins in five games, winning their fifth Stanley Cup in seven years.

In Edmonton, Joe Murphy continued to improve, playing in all 80 games in his final two seasons with the Oilers, scoring 27 and 35 goals in 90-91 and 91-92. In the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs, Joe Murphy led the Oilers in scoring, notching 24 points in 16 playoff games; he and the Oilers would bow out in the Conference Finals 4-0 to the Chicago Blackhawks. At the end of the 1992 season, his contract with Edmonton had expired, and with the two sides reportedly $300,000 apart, negotiations broke down. It wasn’t until February of 1993 that a deal was made to send Murphy to the Blackhawks.

Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks signed Murphy to a three-year deal with an option year; Murphy played the final 19 games for the Hawks, putting up 7 goals and 17 points. In 1993-1994 he played in all 80 games for the Blackhawks, lighting the lamp 31 times and collecting 70 points, his best production in the windy city. After that, Murphy’s production began to decline, and at the end of his contract in 1996, he was subsequently not renewed by the Chicago Blackhawks.

St. Louis Blues/San Jose Sharks

Murphy’s next stop was in St. Louis; the Blues signed him to a 3-year deal at $10 million in the hopes that he could regain his scoring prowess, but it was not to be. After scoring 20 goals and marking 45 points in 75 games in his first season in the Gateway City, Murphy’s sophomore season had a disappointing start, registering 4 goals in 27 games before finally being dealt to the San Jose Sharks.

Murphy found new life in San Jose; in his first full season with the team, he regained his touch and tallied 25 goals for the Sharks, but his tenure in San Jose was short-lived as he opted for free agency at the season’s end and was unable to find any suitors.

Boston Bruins/Washington Capitals

When the 1999-2000 NHL regular season began, Joe Murphy still had not found NHL employment. In November of that season, he was offered a try-out with the New York Rangers but instead signed with the Boston Bruins after less than a week trying out with the Rangers.

By this time in Murphy’s career, he began getting attention for all the wrong reasons. There was talk that he was difficult to work with and that he would make bizarre accusations about his sticks being tampered with while in New York and a verbally abusive tirade against coach Pat Burns in Boston. He managed to hang on in Boston for 26 games before the Bruins suspended him for his profane rants. The Bruins became exasperated with his conduct and eventually put him on waivers where the Washington Capitals acquired him.

Murphy’s NHL career came to a sad ending in Washington; he played 43 games over two seasons and was eventually demoted to the Capitals AHL affiliate, which he, in turn, refused to report to. His demotion was attributed to an altercation he had in New York. After a local nightclub trip, Murphy tried to coerce a woman into a limousine; when she refused, a fight broke out, and the women’s male friend smashed Murphy in the head with a bottle. After the incident, Murphy never played another game in the NHL.

Post-NHL

In 2013, Murphy had a brief stint as the first coach and general manager of the GMHL Alliston Coyotes in their opening season. Due to allegations that have not been revealed, Murphy took a leave of absence from the team midway through the playoffs. A Trespass Order was issued against him by the Town of New Tecumseth, Ontario. On March 5, 2014, Murphy announced his resignation.

In 2017, Murphy was found living on the streets in Costa Rica and was consequently deported back to Canada.

As of 2018, he has an ongoing class-action lawsuit with the NHL. He admits to making upwards of $15 million during his NHL career but now finds himself homeless. SportsCentre aired a feature on him in August 2018, “Finding Murph.”

Murphy suffers from multiple concussion syndrome. He has frequent headaches, erratic mood swings/behavior, shifts in personality, and has become involved in substance abuse.

In 2019, Murphy completed treatment at Thunderbay Ontario’s Regional Health Sciences Centre for Adult Mental Health Services.

The 53-year-old Murphy is now living on the streets of Regina, Saskatchewan.“I’m still enjoying life, I love it, I’m kind of moving around, and I’m on the street, and I’m in a shelter,” said Murphy. “I just want to get a place where I can get into a steady rental place.”

“You could just see he was starting to do erratic things,” said his sister, Cathy, in an interview with TSN in 2018. “He was starting to do drugs; he was starting to drink. If he didn’t have a brain injury, he wouldn’t be doing these drugs.”

Murphy believes the current concussion protocol in the NHL is “excellent,” but it wasn’t the same when he played between 1986 and 2011. “It’s hard out on the street, and I’ve been out on the street off and on for 10 years,” said Murphy.

“Back at that point, I don’t think they handled it as well,” said Murphy. “You know, the Doctors now are with the team 24/7. Back when I played, the Doctor didn’t even travel with the team.”

Regular season and playoffs

		Regular season		Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1984–85	Penticton Knights	BCHL	51	68	84	152	92	—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	Michigan State University	CCHA	35	24	37	61	50	—	—	—	—	—
1986–87	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL	71	21	38	59	61	10	2	1	3	33
1986–87	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	5	0	1	1	2	—	—	—	—	—
1987–88	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL	6	5	6	11	4	—	—	—	—	—
1987–88	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	50	10	9	19	37	8	0	1	1	6
1988–89	Adirondack Red Wings	AHL	47	31	35	66	66	16	6	11	17	17
1988–89	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	26	1	7	8	28	—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	9	3	1	4	4	—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	Edmonton Oilers	NHL	62	7	18	25	56	22	6	8	14	16
1990–91	Edmonton Oilers	NHL	80	27	35	62	35	15	2	5	7	14
1991–92	Edmonton Oilers	NHL	80	35	47	82	52	16	8	16	24	12
1992–93	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL	19	7	10	17	18	4	0	0	0	8
1993–94	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL	80	31	39	70	11	6	1	3	4	25
1994–95	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL	40	23	18	41	89	16	9	3	12	29
1995–96	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL	70	22	29	51	86	10	6	2	8	33
1996–97	St. Louis Blues	NHL	75	20	25	45	69	6	1	1	2	10
1997–98	St. Louis Blues	NHL	27	4	9	13	22	—	—	—	—	—
1997–98	San Jose Sharks	NHL	10	5	4	9	14	6	1	1	2	20
1998–99	San Jose Sharks	NHL	76	25	23	48	73	6	0	3	3	4
1999–2000	Boston Bruins	NHL	26	7	7	14	41	—	—	—	—	—
1999–2000	Washington Capitals	NHL	29	5	8	13	53	5	0	0	0	8
2000–01	Washington Capitals	NHL	14	1	5	6	20	—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals	779	233	295	528	710	120	34	43	77	185

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1986	Canada	WJC	7	4	10	14	2

Player Profile Keith Aulie (tedtalkshockey.com)

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