A WINGER WHO PLAYED ON EITHER SIDE OF THE ICE, MURRAY WILSON TOOK PART IN THE CANADIENS’ FIRST TWO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN THE 1970S THAT KICK-STARTED THE HABS’ DYNASTY.

A speed merchant who played an excellent two-way game, Murray Wilson spent his junior years with the Ottawa 67’s before being drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the 1971 NHL Amateur Draft.

Assigned to the AHL’s Nova Scotia Voyageurs for the 1971-72 season, Wilson adjusted well to the faster pace. Playing on a team littered with future NHLers, he continued to improve his performance at both ends of the ice and played an important role in the team’s Calder Cup Championship that capped off his AHL career.

Moving up to the big club the next fall along with a number of teammates from Nova Scotia, Wilson was used primarily as a checker and penalty killer, but still found a way to light the lamp 18 times in his rookie campaign. Skating on either wing with the same drive, enthusiasm and skill, he had his name engraved on the Stanley Cup for the first time in 1972-73.

The 6-foot-1, 185-pound forward’s speed held up as he climbed the hockey ladder and established himself as one of the NHL’s swiftest skaters.

With other forwards filling the net regularly, Wilson was not called upon to be a sniper. He was a role player, charged with preventing his opponents from making an appearance on the score sheet. Despite playing in a defensive capacity, he could bury the puck when given the chance to do so, notching a career-high 24 goals in 1974-75.

 Back-to-back Stanley Cups came Wilson’s way in 1975-76 and 1976-77 as coach Scotty Bowman established the most recent of Montreal’s hockey dynasties.

A dozen games into the 1977-78 campaign, Murray Wilson’s career with the Habs came to an abrupt end. He suffered an injury that required spinal surgery to repair and spent the remainder of the season recovering from the operation.

Wilson left the Canadiens with 163 points to his credit, including 83 goals and 80 assists in 328 games. He also picked up 19 points in 52 postseason contests.

Traded to the Los Angeles Kings in the spring of 1979, he suited up for 58 games but when his infant daughter’s health problems took his mind away from the game, he hung up his skates for good.

Wilson returned to the Montreal fold in 2000, signing on as the color commentator for the Canadiens’ English language radio broadcasts, a position he still holds. Bringing his experience and solid work ethic to his new job, he learned the ropes quickly and became a pillar on the broadcast team.