Former NHL coach and longtime Bruins scout Tom McVie has passed away at age 89, the team announced Monday. McVie played 18 seasons with various minor league clubs from 1956 to 1974, then was the head coach of the Capitals, Jets, and Devils in parts of nine seasons from 1975 to 1992.
McVie began his NHL career behind the bench in a difficult situation, taking over Washington’s bench partway through their second season in the league. He was tasked with molding together one of the worst rosters in league history, one that had finished 8-67-5 in their expansion season and recorded only 11 wins in year two. While he understandably didn’t make the playoffs in any of his three seasons in Washington, he did get the team out of complete embarrassment territory and was behind the bench for a 24-win season in 1976-77.
After being let go by the Caps following the 1977-78 season, McVie headed to the World Hockey Association to take over Winnipeg’s bench midway through their final season before the NHL-WHA merger. He guided the Jets to an 11-8-0 record to end the season before upsetting both the Nordiques and Oilers to win the final Avco Cup championship, with a roster that included future NHL All-Stars Morris Lukowich and Kent Nilsson.
McVie stayed with Winnipeg post-merger but was fired 28 games into the 1980-81 campaign after the team compiled a 1-20-7 record. He then headed to the Devils organization, where he’d serve as an AHL coach for many years but got a few cracks at the NHL head coach gig in the 1983-84, 1990-91 and 1991-92 campaigns. Boston picked up McVie as an assistant coach the following season, and after transitioning through a few different roles, they made him a pro scout in 1998. He held that role until retiring following the 2019-20 season.
We at Pro Hockey Rumors send our condolences to McVie’s family, friends, and peers.