Marc Crawford

Marc Joseph John Crawford (born February 13, 1961) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. He most recently was the assistant coach for the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL). Crawford won the Stanley Cup in 1996 as head coach of the Colorado Avalanche. He played as a forward for the Vancouver Canucks.
==Early life==
During his teenage years, Crawford attended Nicholson Catholic College in Belleville, Ontario.Nicholson Catholic College He is the son of professional hockey player Floyd Crawford. He is the brother of NHL hockey players Bob Crawford and Lou Crawford.
==Playing career==
Crawford played three seasons of major junior in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) with the Cornwall Royals. During this time, the team won back-to-back Memorial Cups. Crawford was drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in the 1980 NHL Entry Draft in the fourth round, 70th overall. He joined the Canucks in 1981–82. As a rookie, Crawford was a part of Vancouver's 1982 run to the Stanley Cup finals, in which the Canucks were defeated by the New York Islanders.
During his six seasons in the NHL, Crawford would split time between Vancouver and their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Fredericton Express. As a result of constantly flying between the two cities, which are over 5,000 kilometers apart, he earned the nickname "747", though most contemporary Canucks fans know him as "Crow", a nickname coined during his tenure as a head coach with the team. In total, Crawford tallied 19 goals, 31 assists and 50 points in 176 games during his NHL career. After a season in the International Hockey League with the Milwaukee Admirals, Crawford retired as a professional player.
==Coaching career==
===Early coaching career===
Immediately after retiring as a player, Crawford became a head coach in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) with the Cornwall Royals, for whom he had previously played in the QMJHL. After two seasons with Cornwall, Crawford moved to the AHL, and in his first season with the St. John's Maple Leafs, he took his team to the 1992 Calder Cup finals, losing to the Adirondack Red Wings. The following season, Crawford was awarded the Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award as the AHL's coach of the year.
In 1994–95, Crawford broke into the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques and achieved immediate success. As a result, he won the NHL's Jack Adams Award as coach of the year. He is the youngest NHL coach in history to win the Jack Adams. The next season, the Nordiques franchise was relocated to Colorado as the Avalanche, and Crawford won his first and only Stanley Cup as a coach in 1996, defeating the Florida Panthers in four games in the finals.
Crawford would continue to post successful regular seasons with the Avalanche in the next two seasons, but after an early first-round exit in the 1998 playoffs, he resigned on May 27, 1998. Despite reportedly being offered a one-year contract extension by general manager Pierre Lacroix, Crawford decided to "move on and accept a new challenge".
Before his resignation with the Avalanche, Crawford was also the head coach of the Canadian Olympic hockey team at the 1998 Olympics, where they finished a disappointing fourth. Many fans questioned his choice of players to take part in the semi-final shootout with the Czech Republic, in which they lost, electing not to use future Hall of Famers Wayne Gretzky or Steve Yzerman.
===Vancouver Canucks===
After a brief stint as a color commentator on Hockey Night in Canada, Crawford replaced Mike Keenan as head coach of the Vancouver Canucks midway through the 1998–99 season. Joining Vancouver in the midst of a rebuilding period for the franchise, Crawford slowly developed the Canucks into a successful regular season team, playing a fast-paced and offensively emphasized style of play. After one-and-a-half seasons, he led Vancouver back to the playoffs. However, the Canucks were defeated in the first round by his former team, Colorado.
In 2002–03, Vancouver continued to improve under Crawford and posted a franchise record (since surpassed) of 104 points. The following season, they took the Northwest Division title from the Avalanche, who had finished first in their division every season since they won the Northeast Division during their last season playing in Quebec. Despite Vancouver's regular season success, they only managed to win one playoff series during Crawford's tenure. After the Canucks' failure to make the playoffs in the 2005–06 season, Crawford's position as head coach was terminated by management on April 25, 2006. He was replaced by Alain Vigneault.
In six-and-a-half seasons' work with the Canucks, Crawford marked himself as the longest-serving and winningest head coach in franchise history, coaching 529 games and 246 wins. On February 3, 2006, one of his last games in Vancouver, he also became the third-youngest head coach in NHL history to reach 400 wins. At 48 years and 342 days, this mark trails only Scotty Bowman and Glen Sather.
===Later years===
Nearly one month after being fired by Vancouver, Crawford was hired by the Los Angeles Kings, a team in a similar situation to that of the Canucks when Crawford first joined them. On June 10, 2008, Crawford was fired by the Kings, although he had one year remaining on his initial contract. He lasted only two years with the Kings, who thought a change was necessary in the coaching position. During his two seasons with the Kings, he missed the playoffs both times, making the 2004 playoffs as his last playoff appearance as a head coach.
During the 2008–09 season, Crawford did color commentary for Hockey Night in Canada late games alongside play-by-play announcer Mark Lee.
A year after being fired from the Los Angeles Kings, Crawford was hired by Dallas Stars general manager Joe Nieuwendyk to replace previous head coach Dave Tippett. The Stars fired Crawford on April 12, 2011, two days after the Stars' loss to the Minnesota Wild in the last game of the season, which ultimately cost the team the opportunity to capture the eighth playoff berth in the Western Conference. Just like in LA, Crawford's tenure in Dallas lasted only two seasons.
In the summer of 2012, Crawford was named the new coach of the ZSC Lions of the Swiss National League A, having signed a two-year contract. He won the NLA championship with the Lions in the 2013–14 season. In March 2014, he signed a two-year contract extension. In spring 2015, Crawford was responsible for convincing coveted draft prospect Auston Matthews to sign and play with the Lions for the 2015–16 season. Crawford was awed by Matthews' play during the 2015 U18 Championships and contacted Matthews' family and agent about a contract. Crawford would lead the Lions to winning the 2016 Swiss Cup. Crawford left ZSC when his contract expired in 2016. Besides winning the 2014 Swiss championship and 2016 Swiss Cup, he also guided the Lions to three NLA regular season championship titles, in 2013–14, 2014–15 and 2015–16.
In May 2016, following the hiring of Guy Boucher, Crawford was hired as associate coach for the Ottawa Senators. On March 1, 2019, Crawford became the interim head coach of the Senators following the firing of Guy Boucher for the rest of the 2018–19 season going 7–10–1. D. J. Smith was then hired as the Senators head coach for the 2019–20 season. 
On June, 4, 2019 The Chicago Blackhawks announced Crawford as an assistant coach to Jeremy Colliton.
==Awards and achievements==
* Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award (AHL coach of the year) – 1993
* Jack Adams Award (NHL coach of the year) – 1995
* Stanley Cup champion (Colorado Avalanche) – 1996
* Canada Olympic head coach – 1998
==Career statistics==
===Regular season and playoffs===
 	 	 		Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season		Playoffs	Playoffs	Playoffs	Playoffs	Playoffs
Season 	Team 	League 		GP 	G 	A 	Pts 	PIM 		GP 	G 	A 	Pts 	PIM
1978–79 	Cornwall Royals 	QMJHL 		70 	28 	41 	69 	206 		7 	4 	2 	6 	36
1979–80 	Cornwall Royals 	QMJHL 		54 	27 	36 	63 	127 		18 	8 	20 	28 	48
1980–81 	Cornwall Royals 	QMJHL 		63 	42 	58 	100 	242 		19 	20 	15 	35 	27
1981–82 	Vancouver Canucks 	NHL 		40 	4 	8 	12 	29 		14 	1 	0 	1 	11
1981–82 	Dallas Black Hawks 	CHL 		34 	13 	21 	34 	71 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1982–83 	Vancouver Canucks 	NHL 		41 	4 	5 	9 	28 		3 	0 	1 	1 	25
1982–83 	Fredericton Express	AHL 		30 	15 	9 	24 	59 		9 	1 	3 	4 	10
1983–84 	Vancouver Canucks 	NHL 		19 	0 	1 	1 	9 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1983–84 	Fredericton Express	AHL 		56 	9 	22 	31 	96 		7 	4 	2 	6 	23
1984–85 	Vancouver Canucks 	NHL 		1 	0 	0 	0 	4 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1984–85 	Fredericton Express	AHL 		65 	12 	29 	41 	173 		5 	0 	1 	1 	10
1985–86 	Vancouver Canucks 	NHL 		54 	11 	14 	25 	92 		3 	0 	1 	1 	8
1985–86 	Fredericton Express	AHL 		26 	10 	14 	24 	55 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1986–87 	Vancouver Canucks 	NHL 		21 	0 	3 	3 	67 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1986–87 	Fredericton Express	AHL 		25 	8 	11 	19 	21 		— 	— 	— 	— 	—
1987–88 	Fredericton Express	AHL 		43 	5 	13 	18 	90 		2 	0 	0 	0 	14
1988–89 	Milwaukee Admirals 	IHL 		53 	23 	30 	53 	166 		11 	2 	5 	7 	26
AHL totals	AHL totals 	AHL totals		245 	59 	98 	157 	494 		23 	5 	6 	11 	57
NHL totals	NHL totals 	NHL totals		176 	19 	31 	50 	229 		20 	1 	2 	3 	44
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
 	 	 		 	 	 	 	 		 	 	 	 	
===International===
Year 	Team 	Event 	 	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1981 	Canada 	WJC 	 	5 	1	3	4 	4
Junior totals	Junior totals	Junior totals	Junior totals	5 	1	3	4 	4
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
==Head coaching record==
Team 	Year 	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season	Regular season 	Postseason	Postseason	Postseason	Postseason 	Postseason
Team 	Year 	G 	W 	L 	T 	OTL 	Pts 	Finish 	W 	L 	Win% 	Result 	
QUE 	1994–95 	48 	30 	13 	5 	— 	65 	1st in Northeast	2 	4 	.333 	Lost in Conference Quarterfinals 	
COL 	1995–96 	82 	47 	25 	10 	— 	104 	1st in Pacific 	16 	6 	.615 	Won Stanley Cup 	
COL 	1996–97 	82 	49 	24 	9 	— 	107 	1st in Pacific 	10 	7 	.588 	Lost in Conference Finals 	
COL 	1997–98 	82 	39 	26 	17 	— 	95 	1st in Pacific 	3 	4 	.429 	Lost in Conference Quarterfinals 	
QUE/COL total	QUE/COL total	294 	165 	88 	41 	— 	371 	  	31 	21 	.596 	4 playoff appearances1 Stanley Cup	
VAN 	1998–99 	37 	8 	23 	6 	— 	(22) 	4th in Northwest	— 	— 	— 	Missed playoffs 	
VAN 	1999–2000 	82 	30 	29 	15 	8 	83 	4th in Northwest	— 	— 	— 	Missed playoffs 	
VAN 	2000–01 	82 	36 	28 	11 	7 	90 	4th in Northwest	0 	4 	.000 	Lost in Conference Quarterfinals 	
VAN 	2001–02 	82 	42 	30 	7 	3 	94 	2nd in Northwest	2 	4 	.333 	Lost in Conference Quarterfinals 	
VAN 	2002–03 	82 	45 	23 	13 	1 	104 	2nd in Northwest	7 	7 	.500 	Lost in Conference Semifinals 	
VAN 	2003–04 	82 	43 	24 	10 	5 	101 	1st in Northwest	3 	4 	.429 	Lost in Conference Quarterfinals 	
VAN 	2005–06 	82 	42 	32 	— 	8 	92 	4th in Northwest	— 	— 	— 	Missed playoffs 	
VAN total 	VAN total 	529 	246 	189 	62 	32 	583 	  	12 	19 	.387 	4 playoff appearances 	
LAK 	2006–07 	82 	27 	41 	— 	14 	68 	4th in Pacific 	— 	— 	— 	Missed playoffs 	
LAK 	2007–08 	82 	32 	43 	— 	7 	71 	5th in Pacific 	— 	— 	— 	Missed playoffs 	
LAK total 	LAK total 	164 	59 	84 	— 	21 	139 	  	— 	— 	— 	— 	
DAL 	2009–10 	82 	37 	31 	— 	14 	88 	5th in Pacific 	— 	— 	— 	Missed playoffs 	
DAL 	2010–11 	82 	42 	29 	— 	11 	95 	5th in Pacific 	— 	— 	— 	Missed playoffs 	
DAL total 	DAL total 	164 	79 	60 	— 	25 	183 	  	— 	— 	— 	— 	
OTT 	2018–19 	18 	7 	10 	— 	1 	(15) 	8th in Atlantic 	— 	— 	— 	Missed playoffs 	
OTT total 	OTT total 	18 	7 	10 	— 	1 	15 	  	— 	— 	— 	— 	
Total 	Total 	1,169 	556 	431 	103 	79 	1,294 	  	43 	40 	.518 	8 playoff appearances1 Stanley Cup	
==Moore incident==
On February 16, 2004, when Crawford was coach of Vancouver, Colorado player Steve Moore concussed Vancouver captain Markus Näslund on a questionable hit. No penalty was called on the play, and the NHL later reviewed the incident and decided no penalty was warranted. However, Crawford was vocal about the incident and the failure of the NHL to respond.TSN : NHL – Canada's Sports Leader During another game against Colorado on March 8, 2004, Todd Bertuzzi grabbed and punched Moore from behind, and rode him into the ice, causing Moore to suffer three broken vertebrae and multiple facial lacerations, which ultimately ended his career. According to a Colorado player, Crawford was laughing at the situation at the time it occurred and was the subject of substantial criticism following the incident.
Crawford, along with Bertuzzi and the Canucks organization, were named as defendants in a $19+ million (US) lawsuit by Moore. According to the suit, following the February 16 incident, Crawford encouraged his players to seek revenge, which led in part to the injury to Moore. Specifically, Moore alleged that Crawford, Bertuzzi and former general manager Brian Burke entered into "an unlawful plan and agreement to assault, batter and injure Moore at a future date for the injuries that Näslund had suffered during the Feb. 16 game". The Canucks were fined US$250,000 by the NHL for "...failure to prevent the atmosphere that may have led to the incident". As the case approached trial in 2014, Moore increased the damages claim to $68 million. In August 2014, the lawsuit concluded with all parties agreeing to a confidential settlement.
== Abuse of players and apology==
In December 2019, multiple former players Crawford coached in the past came forward with stories of abuse, including Brent Sopel, Patrick O'Sullivan, Harold Druken and Sean Avery. Sopel had since clarified it was not his intention "to make any allegations against anyone or any organization", and Avery also offered support for Crawford.
The Chicago Blackhawks suspended Marc from his role as assistant coach following these allegations and opened an investigation. Crawford subsequently issued an apology to past players that brought forward stories of abuse.
==References==
==External links==
*
Category:1961 births
Category:Living people
Category:Canada men's national ice hockey team coaches
Category:Canadian ice hockey coaches
Category:Canadian ice hockey forwards
Category:Colorado Avalanche coaches
Category:Cornwall Royals (OHL) coaches
Category:Cornwall Royals (QMJHL) players
Category:Dallas Black Hawks players
Category:Dallas Stars coaches
Category:Fredericton Express players
Category:Jack Adams Award winners
Category:Los Angeles Kings coaches
Category:Milwaukee Admirals (IHL) players
Category:National Hockey League broadcasters
Category:Ottawa Senators coaches
Category:Quebec Nordiques coaches
Category:St. John's Maple Leafs coaches
Category:Stanley Cup champions
Category:Stanley Cup championship-winning head coaches
Category:Vancouver Canucks coaches
Category:Vancouver Canucks draft picks
Category:Vancouver Canucks players