Murray Oliver, a center who played in 1,127 NHL games with the Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs and Minnesota North Stars, died Sunday after a heart attack, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported. He was 77.
A five-time All-Star, Oliver scored 20 goals for the Red Wings in 1959-60 to finish second behind Bill Hay in voting for the Calder Memorial Trophy as the League's top rookie. He scored 274 goals and 728 points in 17 NHL seasons, including a career-high 68 points for the Bruins in 1963-64, and had at least 20 goals in three straight seasons.
Oliver was an assistant coach for the North Stars from 1978-86 and took over as coach for 36 games in 1982-83 after Glen Sonmor stepped aside for health reasons. He led the North Stars to a second-place finish in the Norris Division, and they defeated the Maple Leafs in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Oliver later worked as a scout with the Vancouver Canucks and eventually as their director of pro scouting.