At home with the Murrays

The Globe's new (old?) hockey columnist Roy MacGregor has a terrific piece on Senators head coach Bryan Murray and his hometown of Shawville, Quebec, on the front page of Wednesday's paper:

One more win would give Bryan Murray his first chance to coach in a Stanley Cup final — at 64, perhaps his last. The pressure is today both local and family, with the Shawville Murrays dreaming of a Canada Day parade, the Stanley Cup in the lead car.

There are Ottawa Senators flags on most of the half-tons in town this day and Senators signs in store windows. But in the little house on King Street, there is next to nothing related to the team. A photograph of Bryan when he was named NHL coach of the year is on the wall.

That's one of the things I love about the playoffs: when all these great untold stories about the game's personalities come out and become part of the spectacle. I know I won't ever look at Murray the same way after reading this one.