Wed Jul 16 23:46:46 2008

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Kings set to name Murray head coach

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Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - The Los Angeles Kings have called a press conference for Thursday, when they are expected to name Terry Murray as the club's next head coach.

The announcement is scheduled for 1 p.m. (pt) at the Kings' practice facility in nearby El Segundo.

Murray, the 57-year-old native of Shawville, Quebec, was an assistant coach for the Philadelphia Flyers last season. He will become the 22nd head coach in franchise history.

He began his coaching career as an assistant for his brother Bryan with the Washington Capitals from 1983-88. After less than two years behind the bench with the Caps' AHL club in Baltimore, he was appointed Washington's head coach in January, 1990, and remained there until being replaced with Jim Schoenfeld near the end of the 1993-94 season.

Murray moved on to become Flyers head coach from 1994-97. He was fired after that season, however, and became the general manager with the Florida Panthers before firing head coach Doug MacLean in the middle of the 1998-99 season and taking the job himself. After guiding the club to their last playoff berth in 2000, he was fired in the middle of the following season.

The one-time NHL defenseman led the Capitals to the Eastern Conference finals in 1990, and guided the Flyers to the Stanley Cup finals in 1997 where they were swept by the Detroit Red Wings.

The Kings fired Marc Crawford after a last-place finish last season. LA finished with a 32-43-7 record and 71 points, tied for the lowest total in the league with Tampa Bay. Crawford was let go after two seasons in which the Kings went a combined 59-84-21.