Brad McCrimmon

Byron Brad McCrimmon (March 29, 1959 – September 7, 2011) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and coach. A defenceman, he played over 1,200 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Boston Bruins, Philadelphia Flyers, Calgary Flames, Detroit Red Wings, Hartford Whalers and Phoenix Coyotes between 1979 and 1997. He achieved his greatest success in Calgary, where he was named a second team All-Star in 1987–88, played in the 1988 NHL All-Star Game and won the Plus-Minus Award with a league leading total of +48. In 1989, he helped the Flames win their only Stanley Cup championship. His career plus-minus of +444 is the 10th highest total in NHL history, and the highest among players not inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

McCrimmon turned to coaching following his playing career, serving as an assistant with the New York Islanders before taking over as head coach of the Western Hockey League's Saskatoon Blades for two seasons between 1998 and 2000. He then returned to the NHL as an assistant, first with the Flames then the Atlanta Thrashers and finally the Red Wings. He left the NHL to become the head coach of Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) in 2011. He never coached a regular season game however, as he was killed, along with most of the team, after their plane crashed en route to their first game.

Playing career

Junior McCrimmon began his junior career at the age of 15 with the Prince Albert Raiders of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL). He played two seasons with the team, scoring 23 goals and 84 points. In his second season, 1975–76, he was named the SJHL's defenceman of the year. For the 1976–77 season, he moved up to the Brandon Wheat Kings of the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL). He scored 84 points in 72 games in his first WCHL season and added 13 points in 15 playoff games as the Wheat Kings reached the league championship series, only to lose to the New Westminster Bruins. McCrimmon scored 97 points in 1977–78 and 98 in 1978–79. He was named the defenceman of the year in 1978 and was named to the league all-star team in both seasons.

With McCrimmon as team captain, the Wheat Kings again reached the league championship in 1978–79. He scored 28 points in 22 games to help Brandon win the President's Cup. In the Memorial Cup final, he played virtually every minute of the contest. His total ice time was 60 minutes, 38 seconds, and he was off the ice only to serve a two-minute penalty. Peterborough won the game, 2–1 in overtime, after McCrimmon lost the puck on a play he thought was icing was not called. Peterborough's Terry Bovair stole the puck from him and scored the championship winning goal. Despite the loss, McCrimmon was named a tournament all-star on defence. He made his NHL debut on October 11, 1979, in the team's opening night victory over the Winnipeg Jets. He scored 5 goals and 16 points in his rookie season of 1979–80 and improved to 11 goals and 29 points in his second season. Following the retirement of Rogie Vachon, the Bruins needed a new goaltender. McCrimmon's offence improved in his first two seasons in Philadelphia – 25 points in 1982–83 and 24, though without a goal scored, in 1983–84 – He recorded 43 points in 1984–85 and posted a plus-minus rating of +52, fifth best in the NHL. McCrimmon was ruled out of the 1985 Stanley Cup Playoffs in the third game of the league semi-final against the Quebec Nordiques when he suffered a third-degree separation of his left shoulder following a hard hit by Wilf Paiement, an injury that required surgery to repair. The Flyers reached the final without McCrimmon, but were defeated by the Edmonton Oilers for the Stanley Cup. McCrimmon returned to start the 1985–86 season, in which he had his best season statistically. He appeared in all 80 games for the Flyers and set career highs of 13 goals, 43 assists, 56 points and his plus-minus rating of +83 was second only to defensive partner Mark Howe. The Flyers suspended McCrimmon on September 26, 1986, after he refused to appear in the first exhibition games. The impasse was not resolved until a month later, when he and the team agreed to a one-year contract on October 29. He immediately returned to the team and appeared in 72 of the Flyers' 80 games, recording 22 points and finishing fourth in the league at +45. On the 1987–88 Flames, McCrimmon joined Al MacInnis, Paul Reinhart, Gary Suter and Ric Nattress to form one of the top defences in the NHL. He scored 42 points for the Flames, won the NHL Plus-Minus Award with a league-leading +48 and was named a second team All-Star. Additionally, he played in the 1988 All-Star Game. McCrimmon was named the 10th captain in Flames history on November 3, 1989, succeeding Jim Peplinski, who retired early in the 1989–90 season. He scored 4 goals and 19 points during the 1989–90 season, but fell out of favour with head coach Terry Crisp as the two disagreed over how the team's defencemen were used. The Flames chose to trade him following the season, sending him to the Detroit Red Wings on June 15, 1990, in exchange for a second-round draft pick. McCrimmon's 29 points were a significant improvement on the 13 he scored the season before. Offensively, he scored 16 points total in three seasons with the Whalers between 1993 and 1996. Leaving the team as a free agent, McCrimmon signed with the Phoenix Coyotes for the 1996–97 season.

McCrimmon was paired with some of the best defencemen of his generation. In addition to Lidstrom and Pronger, he played with Hockey Hall of Famers Ray Bourque, Mark Howe and Paul Coffey. He was known as a stay at home defenceman who focused on limiting the opposition's chances. He played a physical game, often in the "dirty" areas of the ice – battling opponents in the corners and in front of the net. McCrimmon's career plus-minus was +444, a total surpassed by only nine players as of 2012. Brian Propp, a teammate of his in Philadelphia, said that he was one of the most under-rated defencemen of his time.

Joe Mullen, member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and McCrimmon's teammate on the 1989 Stanley Cup Champion Calgary Flames, named McCrimmon as the most difficult player to play against.

Coaching career and death The Calgary Flames wear special uniforms honouring McCrimmon prior to an NHL game in 2011–12. alt=View from behind of five hockey players, each wearing red uniforms with black trim. The back of all five players reads "MCCRIMMON 4". McCrimmon moved behind the bench shortly after his retirement, joining the New York Islanders as an assistant coach to Mike Milbury on August 19, 1997. In two seasons with the team, he coached 144 games, winning 50 and tying 15. McCrimmon coached the Blades to a second-place finish in the East Division in 1999–2000 and a seven-game opening round playoff victory over the Regina Pats before the team was eliminated by the Calgary Hitmen.

Returning to the NHL in 2000, McCrimmon joined the Calgary Flames as an assistant to Don Hay. He remained with the team for two and a half seasons, serving under both Hay and successor Greg Gilbert until the team replaced its coaching staff on December 3, 2002. He returned to the NHL in 2004 as an assistant for the Atlanta Thrashers. He was promoted to associate coach in his fourth season when team general manager Don Waddell fired head coach Bob Hartley during the 2007–08 season. McCrimmon had been offered the Thrashers head coaching position after Waddell's dismissal, but turned it down after the team failed to guarantee he would retain the position beyond the end of the season. Leaving the Thrashers, McCrimmon signed a three-year contract with the Detroit Red Wings in 2008 to serve as an assistant coach.

Looking to further his career, he left Detroit on May 19, 2011, and was introduced as head coach of Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) on May 29. He hoped that coaching the Russian club would help him land an NHL head coaching position in the future. He never coached a game for Lokomotiv, as he was killed in the 2011 Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane crash en route to their first game of the season. McCrimmon died along with nearly the entire team.

Personal life McCrimmon was born on March 29, 1959 in Dodsland, Saskatchewan, He brought the Stanley Cup back to Plenty in 1989 after winning it with the Flames, fulfilling a promise McCrimmon made to his grandfather as a youth.

Hockey was a significant part of McCrimmon's life from his youth. His father Byron was a long time senior player and coach for the Rosetown Red Wings in Saskatchewan. The younger McCrimmon played for teams in both Plenty and Rosetown at the same time, often appearing on teams one level above his age. His younger brother Kelly is the general manager for the Vegas Golden Knights, and the pair played together as teammates with the Wheat Kings in 1978–79.

Nicknamed "Beast" and "Sarge", McCrimmon was often considered "gruff" and had a direct way of speaking that cultivated respect amongst his peers. According to former teammate Lanny McDonald: "He was tough, he was abrasive, but on the inside he was a big teddy bear, a big softie." McCrimmon's brother remembered him as a person who dedicated himself to his family. WCHL/WHL first All-Star team 1977–781978–79 Memorial Cup All-Star team 1979

Stanley Cup champion 1989 Second team All-Star 1987–88 NHL Plus-Minus Award 1987–88

Barry Ashbee Trophy 1984–85