Bryan and Terry Murray first opposed one another as coaches during the 1990-91 season. Bryan was coaching Detroit and Terry was behind the Washington bench. What made this an interesting contest was the fact that Terry replaced his brother as Caps coach a little more than halfway into the 1989-90 season.
It turned out that Caps General Manager David Poile made the right call. Terry Murray coached the Caps to the conference finals, where his team lost to the Boston Bruins.
The schedule maker didn't wait long in setting up the Washington-Detroit contest; it was the second game for the Caps and Red Wings.
"Obviously it is genetics," said Bryan Murray about the rather large list of siblings that have played or are presently in the NHL. "The Sutter brothers, the Hull brothers. They grew up playing the game and having the physical attributes that are required to play. They came from the same location pretty much as far as the small town and they are very competitive.
"I think the same thing (the Murray brothers becoming coaches). Terry had a great interest at the end of his playing career in going into coaching. I think he is a good coach and the opportunities were there. I had gone through to be a teacher and then a coach.
"Terry was a copycat."
Bryan Murray must have thought Terry was a pretty good coach. He has hired him twice. The Caps claimed Terry Murray on waivers from Philadelphia at the start of the 1981-82 season, Bryan Murray's first year in Washington. But bloodlines only get a coach or player so far.
"He was in Washington when I got the job (in 1981) but I hired him as an assistant coach," said Murray, who never thought of hiring his brother as an act of nepotism. "Well, I have heard that a few times. I hired him as a head coach when I was a general manager (Florida Panthers in 1998), but I only believe you hire people that are good. It doesn't matter whether they are brothers.
"He is a very good coach and was a big help when I was in Washington."
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