You might not know the name Matt Murley, but the former NHLer is the proud owner of a very unique honour.
Murley only enjoyed 62 games as a pro, spending parts of the 2003-04 and 2005-06 seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins before joining the Phoenix Coyotes in 2007-08. If you’re a real die-hard hockey fan, you might be able to point out a coincidence during his small stint in the league. In an interview on the Spittin’ Chicklets podcast, the 37-year-old made sure to point out that he is the only skater in NHL history that played with Sidney Crosby and Mario Lemieux, and was also coached by Wayne Gretzky in his career.
Not too shabby for a guy who played less than an entire season in ‘The Show’. The 2005-06 season marked Crosby's rookie campaign and Mario Lemieux's last, while Gretzky coached the 'Yotes from 2005-09. Talk about some insane timing...
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Murley was drafted by the Penguins with the 51st overall pick in the 1999 draft. He ended up finishing his NHL career with 2 goals and 7 assists before playing his days out in Europe.
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If things hadn’t worked out the way they did, many of you likely wouldn’t have heard the name Matt Murley before. It’s still pretty special though, as Crosby, Gretzky and Lemieux could be remembered as the three greatest forwards in NHL history when it's all said and done.
A truly odd, but awesome fact.
(H/T Spittin’ Chicklets)
