NHLer Passes Away.
Bryan William Marchment was born on May 1, 1969, in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada. He was a professional ice hockey player. He was drafted 16th overall in 1987 by the Winnipeg Jets. He played in the National Hockey League from 1988-89 to 2005-06. He played for the Winnipeg Jets, Chicago Blackhawks, Hartford Whalers, Edmonton Oilers, Tampa Bay Lightning, San Jose Sharks, Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Calgary Flames. Until his death, he worked with the San Jose Sharks as a scout and was with the organization in Montreal, preparing for the 2022 NHL Entry Draft.
The Minors
Marchment’s path to the pros began in 1982 when he played in the Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a team from Mississauga, Ontario. He then played four years of junior hockey with the Belleville Bulls of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) from 1985 to 1989. Marchment was known as somewhat of an offensive defenceman in the OHL; he produced mainly as a set-up man notching a career-high 51 assists in 56 games in 187-88.
NHL Career
Marchment made his NHL debut on March 29, 1989, at the Great Western Forum in a game against the Los Angeles Kings. he played in only two games that season for the Jets and would bounce back and forth between the parent club and their affiliate, the American Hockey League’s Moncton Hawks. On July 22, 1991, the Winnipeg Jets traded Marchment and Chris Norton to the Chicago Blackhawks for Troy Murray and Warren Rychel. From this point on, Marchment became a full-time NHLer. From this point on, Marchment became a full-time NHLer.
NHL Bryan Marchment
Marchment played in Chicago from 1991 to 1993 before being traded to the Hartford Whalers on November 2, 1993, along with Steve Larmer in exchange for Eric Weinrich and Patrick Poulin. His time in Hartford was limited to only 42 games before he packed his suitcase and headed North to play for the Edmonton Oilers on August 30, 1994, as compensation for Hartford obtaining Steve Rice. While in Edmonton, Marchment suffered a severe concussion during Game 2 of the Western Quarter Final against the Dallas Stars. The incident unfolded when Marchment tripped head first into the penalty box door just as Dallas Stars centreman Guy Carbonneau opened it to return to the ice. The impact was so powerful that it knocked Marchments helmet off and caused him to go into convulsions, requiring him to be rushed to the hospital for an MRI and CAT scan; fortunately, there was no brain damage.
Marchment played nearly four seasons in Edmonton before being traded yet again; this time, he was traded to Tampa Bay along with Steve Kelly and Jason Bonsignore for Paul Comrie and Roman Hamrlik on December 30, 1997. Marchment played only 22 games in Tampa Bay before being traded on March 24, 1998, this time to San Jose, along with David Shaw and a first-round draft pick in 1998 in exchange for Vincent Lecavalier.
After changing postal codes five times in his NHL career, Marchment finally found a home in San Jose. While patrolling the Shark’s blue line, he enjoyed his best years in the NHL. He played in San Jose from 1997-98 to 2002-03. Sixty-seven games into the 2002-03 season, he found himself back on the trading block in familiar circumstances. This time he finished the season as a member of the Colorado Avalanche. On July 11, 2003, he signed as a free agent with his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs. Marchment played in 75 games for the Leafs and 13 playoff games.
Due to the NHL lockout of 2004-05, he could not play. On October 11, 2005, Marchment signed as a free agent with the Calgary Flames, where he would play 37 games before calling it a career. In March of 2008, Marchment became a scout for the Calgary Flames, where he remained employed until his passing on July 6, 2022. Marchment’s passing was unexpected, and the cause of death has not been determined. It is speculated that it may have been a sudden heart attack as he was healthy in every way as far as anyone knew.
Legacy
Marchment earned himself a reputation during his NHL playing days. He was considered by many to be a cheap shot artist who had little respect for his opponents. He was known as a ruthless competitor who purposely tried to injure other players. He earned his reputation by being suspended 13 times in 12 seasons. The list of players he injured is numerous and of the Star variety. Some of his most notable and savage attacks were against Mike Modano, Joe Nieuwendyk, Greg Adams, Martin Rucinsky, Paul Kariya, Wendel Clark, Pavel Bure, Mike Gartner, Peter Zezel, Kevin Dineen, Sami Salo, and Magnus Arvedson. Marchments attack on Mike Gartner was among his most brutal. On February 3, 1995, while playing a home game with the Oilers against the Maple Leafs, Marchment laid a hit on Gartner that collapsed one of Gartner’s lungs. The injury was so serious that Gartner had to travel back to Toronto by train as his lungs couldn’t handle the flight. In another incident, Doug Weight of the Edmonton Oilers attacked Marchment during a game against the San Jose Sharks after the defenseman leveled a knee-on-knee hit on the Oilers captain.
Ted Talks Hockey Career statistics (NHL Bryan Marchment )
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1985–86 | Belleville Bulls | OHL | 57 | 5 | 15 | 20 | 225 | 21 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 83 |
| 1986–87 | Belleville Bulls | OHL | 52 | 6 | 38 | 44 | 238 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 17 |
| 1987–88 | Belleville Bulls | OHL | 56 | 7 | 51 | 58 | 200 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 19 |
| 1988–89 | Belleville Bulls | OHL | 43 | 14 | 36 | 50 | 198 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
| 1988–89 | Winnipeg Jets | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1989–90 | Moncton Hawks | AHL | 56 | 4 | 19 | 23 | 217 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1989–90 | Winnipeg Jets | NHL | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1990–91 | Moncton Hawks | AHL | 33 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 101 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1990–91 | Winnipeg Jets | NHL | 28 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 91 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1991–92 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 58 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 168 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 36 |
| 1992–93 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 78 | 5 | 15 | 20 | 313 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| 1993–94 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 13 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 42 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1993–94 | Hartford Whalers | NHL | 42 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 124 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1994–95 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 40 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 184 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1995–96 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 78 | 3 | 15 | 18 | 202 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1996–97 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 71 | 3 | 13 | 16 | 132 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 1997–98 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 27 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 58 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1997–98 | Tampa Bay Lightning | NHL | 22 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 43 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1997–98 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 12 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 43 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1998–99 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 59 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 101 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 1999–00 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 49 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 72 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 12 |
| 2000–01 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 75 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 204 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 2001–02 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 72 | 2 | 20 | 22 | 178 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| 2002–03 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 67 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 108 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2002–03 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 14 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 33 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2003–04 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 75 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 106 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 2005–06 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 37 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 75 | — | — | — | — | — |
| NHL totals | 926 | 40 | 142 | 182 | 2307 | 83 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 102 |
Keep Your Stick on the Ice
NHLer Passes Away.
