Bryan Murray to be remembered at CTC ceremony

Former Ottawa Senators coach and general manager Bryan Murray will be remembered next week at a public ceremony at Canadian Tire Centre, the hockey arena where he earned the admiration of players, colleagues and fans.

Murray died Saturday at the age of 74 after a three-year long fight with colon cancer.

He went public with the diagnosis in 2014, but continued working with the Senators organization.

The celebration of life will take place Aug. 24 starting at 1 p.m. Attendees are asked to enter through Gates 1 or 2.

Instead of flowers, people are asked to donate to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the Shawville Recreation Association, DEBRA Canada (in honour of Jonathan Pitre), the Jardins Educatif du Pontiac or another charity.

Hockey career spanned decades

Murray grew up in Shawville, Que., where he began playing hockey.

Murray worked in the NHL for 35 years, winning the Jack Adams award as the best NHL coach in 1984 while with the Washington Capitals.

As head coach of the Senators, he led the team to the Stanley Cup finals in 2007, becoming the team's GM at the end of that season.

During his 35 years in the NHL, he coached 1,239 games over his NHL career, including 620 wins.

Even after his cancer diagnosis, he stayed on as general manager for nearly two years before stepping down in 2016, when he became the organization's senior hockey adviser.