Senators' Murray to leave GM job after 2015-16: report

Ottawa Senators general manager Bryan Murray expects the 2015-16 season to be his final one in his current position, he told CBC Wednesday.

Murray, 72, announced in November 2014 that he had inoperable Stage 4 colon cancer and he has been receiving chemotherapy since then.

"I'm not as energized as I once was, but age has a little to do with that as well as the sickness," Murray said.

He said as long as his doctors and family allow him to keep working, he'll be with the Senators. His contract stipulates that when he leaves his GM job he will move into an adviser role.

"That's where I've really been treated with great respect," Murray said. "[Wife] Geri, we have been together a long time. She wants me to slow down. She certainly wants more time to do things, and I'm being a little bit selfish. I like the idea of being active, being somewhat important in what you do.

"[I like the idea] of sharing some knowledge to the young people that will eventually take over here and help as much as I can rebuild this hockey team to a contending hockey team."

Murray has been with the Senators since 2004, when he was hired as coach, and has been GM since 2007.

He will be honored Thursday as the United Way Community Builder of the Year because of his work spreading awareness about the role of colonoscopy in early cancer detection.

"It's not something that was easy to talk about, especially with a family and the articles that followed with terminal cancer, for my daughters and my wife," he said, "But it's a fact of life.

"You try not to [reveal your weaknesses] but I wasn't so worried about that. I've been around such a long time in the community that I've gotten to know so many people that work in hockey … I've thought if I could share it would be good for different organizations."