REGINA - It has been almost 30 years since Bryan Murray patrolled the bench of the Western Hockey League's Regina Pats, but the memories have been preserved like snapshots in a photo album.

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Ottawa Senators General Manager Bryan Murray (file photo).

Photograph by : John Major for Ottawa Citizen

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"It was a while ago but it was a great year for me and a big stepping stone," offered the Ottawa Senators general manager, who's in the Queen City for Monday night's National Hockey League pre-season game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. "It was a great year and a lot of fun. I never got back enough. I've only been back to Regina three or four times since then. We get locked up in our own little worlds too often but certainly it was a year that I have great memories of."

Before joining the Pats, Murray - a former high-school teacher - had been coaching in Ontario's Central Junior A Hockey League. In 1979, Pats GM Bob Strumm "took a chance" and hired the native of Shawville, Que. The move paid immediate dividends as Murray guided Regina, which was coming off an 18-win season, to a record of 47-24-1 and a WHL title.

Murray stirred the drink of an all-star concoction that included Ron Flockhart, Darren Veitch, Brian Varga, Mike Blaisdell and Bart Hunter. But the key ingredient was Doug Wickenheiser, who led the league with 89 goals and 170 points (Murray even remembered the exact totals) en route to being named league MVP and going first overall to the Montreal Canadiens in the 1980 NHL entry draft.

Wickenheiser's extraordinary season is just one of the things that stands out after all these years. Murray was struck by the character and toughness of players from the west. He also recalls being immediately impressed by the team's new arena, the Agridome, as well as the support of Pats fans. In particular, he marvelled at the passion of local enthusiasts after attending his first Saskatchewan Roughriders game.

At the same time, the entire experience was also a bit of a culture shock - from the cold weather to the long bus trips.

"It was a long ways from home," noted Murray, 66. "My family stayed back in the East. I had a young daughter at the time and I had just bought a business, so it was a big change and a big decision to make. I got back East for Christmas for a couple days and that was it really. I lived in an apartment. The whole environment was different . . . but I enjoyed it. The experience was so beneficial."

Along the way, Murray found himself in the middle of the most controversial Memorial Cup tournament in history. After advancing to the Canadian Hockey League championship, which took place in Brandon and Regina, the Pats were positioned as one of the favourites. Retelling the details with stunning clarity, Murray was frustrated when Regina lost 5-3 to a Cornwall Royals team perceived to be inferior to his own group. Then Regina blew a 3-0 third-period lead against Mike Keenan's Peterborough Petes, losing 4-3. That set the stage for an infamous final round-robin matchup between Peterborough and Cornwall. If the Petes won, they'd face Regina in the final. If they lost, it would set up another meeting with the Royals.

Unfortunately for the Pats . . .

"Peterborough had the lead, had the best team by far, and in the third period didn't try to play and obviously eliminated us," recalled Murray. "It ended up Cornwall beat Peterborough (in the final), I guess because of the controversy and the fan reaction (the ice and the Petes' bench were pelted with eggs and other garbage). No question it was pretty brutal that Sunday in the finals.''

"I coached a number of the players in the NHL that played for Peterborough in that particular Memorial Cup, so I know some of the story,'' Murray added. "It was very disappointing. I remember going after the Canadian Hockey people, wondering why they didn't do something about it. They changed the rule after that . . . but it's something that must be disturbing to a lot of players that played for the Pats at that time because we deserved better. In turn I always say we could have solved all the problems by beating Peterborough the night we were leading and probably should have beaten them and we didn't. They're no more to blame in some regards than we were."

The bitter disappointment of that experience eventually had a happy ending for Murray, who was offered a job as the head coach of the Washington Capitals' minor-league affiliate in Hershey. A little over a year later, he was promoted by the Capitals. It was the start of a 28-year NHL career in coaching and management that also took him to Detroit, Florida, Anaheim and Ottawa.

Interestingly enough, after all these years, Murray remains the last coach to guide the Pats to a WHL title and advance to the Memorial Cup.

"For us to get there, we had a special group," added Murray, who's ranked sixth in the NHL in all-time games coached (1,239) and sixth in wins (620). "It's a hard grind. It's like winning the Stanley Cup. If you get there you've had a heck of a year. If you win it you've really achieved a lot - you've got depth and luck and health and everything on your side."

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