Marv Edwards spent a season with the Toronto Maple Leafs, appearing in 25 games during the 1969-70 NHL season. That same year, his mug appeared on the front of a hockey card for the only time during his long career. (I apologize, Mr. Edwards, for what I’m about to say) That mug shot made Johnny Bower look like a teenager.
What struck me was that on the back of that 1969-70 O-Pee-Chee hockey card, it stated that Marv was just a young buck at 24 years old. It seemed plausible. After all, his NHL stats were blank on the back, something which turned out to be another uncorrected error.
However, Marv Edwards was not 24 at the time. He was, in fact, ten years older. Edwards played his first pro hockey game a decade and a half before. As for the blank stats, he did appear in a single game in 1968-69, in net for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
So, digging a little deeper into the curious case of Marv Edwards, I found a pretty exciting hockey career. No doubt, Edwards was a victim of a six team league where the number one playing the bulk, if not all of the games. Today, there are really only 60 men that play the goaltender position each National Hockey League season. The odds of becoming a NHL goalie are astronomical. In the days when that number was just six, imagine the talent that went by the wayside.
Marv Edwards – Junior
Edwards had a lengthy major junior career in what is now the Ontario Hockey League. He played for the St. Catherines Teepees for five years from 1950-51 to 1954-55.
In 1952-53, the Teepees finished fourth in the eight team league during the regular season. In the opening round, the team was swept in three games by the St. Michael’s Majors. However, Marv joined up with the rival Barrie Flyers for their Memorial Cup run. The Flyers were the number one seed in the OHA and took out the St. Boniface Canadiens to capture the Mem Cup championship. The Barrie team featured the likes of Don Cherry, Don McKenney, Doug Mohns and Orval Tessier.
The following year, Edwards won another Memorial Cup, this time with his own team. St. Catherines placed first overall in the nine team league and won the Robertson Cup over the Toronto Marlboros in seven games. The Teepees then met up with the Edmonton Oil Kings and won the 1954 Memorial Cup championship. This Rudy Pilous team was not overly star-studded with players like Barry Cullen, Brian Cullen and Elmer Vasko leading the way.
Marv Edwards – Minor Pro
Edwards saw his first pro action during his final year with the Teepees, 1954-55. He played in two games for the Buffalo Bisons of the American Hockey League. He then spent four years playing senior amateur hockey in Ontario.
With the Chatham Maroons in 1955-56, he helped the team to an Allan Cup final before bowing out to the Vernon Canadians. In 1958-59, he played for the North Bay Trappers but joined the Belleville McFarlands for the IIHF World Championships.
Representing Canada, the McFarlands won gold at the tournament held in Czechoslovakia (mostly Prague). Other familiar names on that Belleville team included Red Berenson and Pete Conacher. Berenson led the tournament in scoring. The Soviet Union took silver while the host Czechoslovakia took bronze.
With the Johnstown Jets of the EHL in 1960-61, Edwards made his first big mark on the pro hockey world. Playing all 64 regular season and all 12 playoff games for the Jets, Marv helped the team to a first place finish in the eight team league and a playoff championship, beating the New Haven Blades in the finals. Dick Roberge led the team offensively while Edwards won his first of three George Davis Trophies as the league’s top goalie.
From 1962-63 to 1966-67, Edwards was a mainstay with the EHL’s Nashville Dixie Flyers, only missing a handful of games over the five years. He was awarded the George Davis Trophy in back-to-back seasons, 1965-66 and 1966-67.
Marv helped the Dixie Flyers to a first place finish in 1964-65, losing in the finals to the Long Island Ducks. The Ducks were coached by John Muckler and had another future NHL coach John Brophy on defense. Nashville got revenge the following season. After finishing second to Long Island during the regular season, the two teams met again in the finals with the Dixie Flyers coming out ahead this time.
Nashville repeated as champions in 1966-67 after taking the regular season title. In the finals, the Dixie Flyers took out the Vic Stasiuk coached Jersey Devils. Over his time with Nashville, Edwards played for head coach John McLellan. McLellan would coach the Toronto Maple Leafs for a stint and he was the man behind the bench for the season Edwards played for the club.
1967-68 brought a new team in a new league. Marv found himself sharing duties with Jimmy McLeod between the pipes for the Portland Buckaroos in the WHL. McLeod was an outstanding minor league goalie that won the WHL’s Outstanding Goalkeeper Award four times.
The Buckaroos, coached by Hal Laycoe, finished first overall in the five team league. However, Guyle Fielder and the Seattle Totems denied them in the finals. Edwards was honoured with the Outstanding Goalkeeper Award.
Marv would return to the WHL for the 1970-71 and 1971-72 seasons with the Phoenix Roadrunners, sandwiched between his time in the NHL.
Marv Edwards – NHL
Then came the big 1969-70 season with the Maple Leafs. Marv played in 25 games, recording a 3.25 goals against average and one shutout. He was backup to Bruce Gamble, who appeared in 52 games. Johnny Bower played just a single game and Gerry McNamara played in two. Toronto finished last in the six team Eastern Division, 21 points behind the fifth place New York Rangers.
He would return to the National Hockey League with the California Golden Seals in 1972-73. Edwards was backup to Gilles Meloche over his two seasons, appearing in 21 games in 1972-73 and 14 games n 1973-74.
Marv Edwards – Coaching
Marv served as head coach for the CHL’s Salt Lake Golden Eagles for the 1975-76 and 1976-77 seasons. In the first year, the team finished third out of six and lost in the semi-finals to the Dallas Black Hawks. The following year, the team placed fifth in the six team CHL and did not qualify for the post season. The highlight of those two seasons was the development of NHL sniper Charlie Simmer.
Nearly two decades later, Edwards took on the assistant coaching role with the Peterborough Petes of the OHL. He served under head coaches Dave MacQueen, Brian Drumm and Rick Allain. Stars like Jamie Langenbrunner, Cameron Mann and Scott Barney passed through the system.
In 1995-96, the Petes won a Robertson Cup championship, taking out the Guelph Storm in seven games. Peterborough was outscored 29-28 on the series and two games were decided in overtime. Game seven needed extra time before the Petes came out ahead 8-7.
Peterborough hosted the Memorial Cup tournament that year. After reaching the final game, the Petes were shutout by the Granby Predateurs of the QMJHL.
Marv Edwards – Rookie Card
The Marv Edwards rookie card appears as number 185 in the 1969-70 O-Pee-Chee set. It is his only hockey card, despite his two years with the Golden Seals.
As mentioned, there are two errors on the back of the card. One is his age, stating that Marv is 24 when he was, in fact, 34 at the time. The other is the lack of stats despite appearing his first NHL game the year before.
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | A | PIM | SO | GAA |
| 1968-69 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.00 |
| 1969-70 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 25 | 1 | 24 | 1 | 3.25 |
| 1972-73 | California Golden Seals | NHL | 21 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 4.32 |
| 1973-74 | California Golden Seals | NHL | 14 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3.92 |