Ron Murphy evolved the way many hockey players do. In junior, Murphy was a top notch goal scorer. When he got to the National Hockey League, Ron’s new role was as a checking forward.
The role fit. If not for a nagging shoulder injury, his NHL career would have spanned over 1,000 regular season games. If he’d not retired due to injury, Murphy would have most likely been part of Boston’s two Stanley Cup championships in the early 1970’s.
Ron Murphy – Junior and Minor Pro
Murphy played parts of four seasons with the Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters in the OHA from 1949-50 to 1952-53. However, his first season consisted of just a single game.
In 1951-52, Ron and the Biltmores had an outstanding season. Murphy tied for second in the league with 58 goals. His 58 assists were good for fifth and he finished fourth in the race for the Eddie Powers Trophy with 116 points.
Ron Murphy Collection
Guelph won the OHA Junior A championship with a win over the St. Catherines Teepees. In the Richardson Cup finals, the Mad Hatters came out on top against the Montreal Junior Canadiens. Guelph then went on to sweep the Regina Pats for the Memorial Cup championship.
Murphy wasn’t the only future NHLer with Guelph in 1951-52. Also on the roster were Andy Bathgate, Dean Prentice, Harry Howell and Lou Fontinato. Later on in life, Howell would become Ron’s brother-in-law.
In 1952-53, players had graduated, as they do in junior hockey, and the team tanked. Murphy was still able to put up great numbers with limited time in Guelph due to 15 games in the NHL with the New York Rangers.
That last season of junior, Murphy tied for fifth in goal scoring with 39 goals, equal to Parker MacDonald of the Toronto Marlboros. His 42 assists tied him with Doug Mohns of the Barrie Flyers for fifth spot. His 81 points placed him fifth in the league.
He might have appeared in 15 games with the Rangers in 1952-53 while still a junior but Ron’s first pro hockey action came the year before. In 1951-52, he played a single game in the American Hockey League for the Cincinnati Mohawks.
As a member of the Rangers, Murphy spent more than his fair share of time in the minors. He split 1953-54 between New York and the Saskatoon Quakers of the WHL. In 1956-57, time was shared between the Big Apple and the Providence Reds in the AHL. That would be his last year with the Rangers and his last major amount of time spent in the minors.
Murphy played just six more games in the minors during his career. In 1967-68, as a member of the Boston Bruins, he played six games in the CPHL with the Oklahoma City Blazers.
Ron returned to his roots after retirement, spending two years coaching in the OHL. In 1970-71 and 1971-72, Murphy was head coach of the Kitchener Rangers. In both years, Kitchener fell in the opening round of the playoffs. Hockey Hall of Fame member Bill Barber starred for the Rangers in both seasons. Larry Robinson was on the blue line for the 1970-71 campaign.
Ron Murphy – NHL
Murphy played 889 regular season National Hockey League games between 1952-53 and 1969-70 with the Rangers, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins. Over that time, he scored 205 and assisted on 274 for 479 points. In the Stanley Cup playoffs, he added 15 points over 53 games.
Ron was a member of the 1960-61 Chicago Blackhawks Stanley Cup championship team. Third seed Chicago took out fourth place Detroit in the finals. In 1969-70, Murphy played just 20 games with the Bruins before calling it a career. He did not participate in the playoffs with Boston winning the championship over the St. Louis Blues.
As mentioned, he couldn’t quite find a permanent spot with the Rangers. In June, 1957, Murphy was traded to Chicago for Hank Ciesla. In the summer of 1964, the Blackhawks traded him away to the Red Wings, along with Autry Erickson for Ian Cushenan, John Miszuk and Art Stratton. Of all the players in those trades, Ron would remain the only with with any sort of impact in the NHL.
In February, 1966, Murphy was traded one last time. Detroit sent him to Boston with Gary Doak and Bill Lesuk for Leo Boivin and Dean Prentice.
His best offensive season in the NHL came in his last full season, 1968-69. On a line with Phil Esposito and Ken Hodge, suddenly Murphy was no longer in a checking role. Over 60 games, he scored 16 and assisted on 38 for 54 points. In the playoffs he added eight points in ten games.
Murphy, Esposito and Hodge combined for 263 points, a record at the time. Just a few years later, Esposito’s line would shatter that mark.
Ron Murphy – Rookie Card
The Ron Murphy rookie card appears as number 78 in the 1954-55 Parkhurst set. He is shown as a member of the New York Rangers. The back of the card notes an infamous stick swinging incident he had with Bernie Geoffrion of the Montreal Canadiens.
Back in the day when sensitivity wasn’t an issue, the back of his cards often referred to his slightly bowed legs. His 1965-66 Topps card makes note of his NHL playing brother-in-law in the trivia question. The player was Guelph and New York teammate Harry Howell.
Ron Murphy Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1949-50 | Guelph Biltmores | OHA | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1950-51 | Guelph Biltmores | OHA | 54 | 44 | 44 | 88 | 38 |
| 1951-52 | Guelph Biltmores | OHA | 51 | 58 | 58 | 116 | 36 |
| 1951-52 | Cincinnati Mohawks | AHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-53 | Guelph Biltmores | OHA | 45 | 39 | 42 | 81 | 52 |
| 1952-53 | New York Rangers | NHL | 15 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 1953-54 | Saskatoon Quakers | WHL | 24 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 2 |
| 1953-54 | New York Rangers | NHL | 27 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 20 |
| 1954-55 | New York Rangers | NHL | 66 | 14 | 16 | 30 | 36 |
| 1955-56 | New York Rangers | NHL | 66 | 16 | 28 | 44 | 71 |
| 1956-57 | Providence Reds | AHL | 21 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 14 |
| 1956-57 | New York Rangers | NHL | 33 | 7 | 12 | 19 | 14 |
| 1957-58 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 69 | 11 | 17 | 28 | 32 |
| 1958-59 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 59 | 17 | 30 | 47 | 52 |
| 1959-60 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 63 | 15 | 21 | 36 | 18 |
| 1960-61 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 70 | 21 | 19 | 40 | 30 |
| 1961-62 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 60 | 12 | 16 | 28 | 41 |
| 1962-63 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 68 | 18 | 16 | 34 | 28 |
| 1963-64 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 70 | 11 | 8 | 19 | 32 |
| 1964-65 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 58 | 20 | 19 | 39 | 32 |
| 1965-66 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 32 | 10 | 7 | 17 | 10 |
| 1965-66 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1966-67 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 39 | 11 | 16 | 27 | 6 |
| 1967-68 | Oklahoma City Blazers | CPHL | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| 1967-68 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 1968-69 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 60 | 16 | 38 | 54 | 26 |
| 1969-70 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 20 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 8 |
| NHL Totals | 889 | 205 | 274 | 479 | 460 |