Former Lightning coach, longtime hockey broadcaster Barry Melrose dies at age 70

Barry Melrose, who briefly coached the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2008, led the Los Angeles Kings to the 1993 Stanley Cup Final and enjoyed a long hockey broadcasting career, has died. He was 70.

ESPN announced Melrose’s death Wednesday after his wife informed the network, where he spent more than a quarter-century until his diagnosis with Parkinson's disease in 2023.

"Barry was my best friend at ESPN," John Buccigross, who worked with Melrose at the network, wrote Wednesday on social media. "A big brother figure of rock solid values. I am shook to my core. Barry gave his life to hockey and some of his ESPN family, like me, learned of his shocking death today while at a hockey rink in Las Vegas preparing for the upcoming season."

After a 13-year playing career that included time in the NHL and old World Hockey League, Melrose retired in 1988 and went into coaching. As a coach, he won titles in the Western and American leagues before he was hired by the Kings in 1992.

Melrose took Los Angeles to the 1992-93 Stanley Cup Final, which they lost to the Montreal Canadiens in five games. He was fired with a record of 79-101 and 29 ties over two-plus seasons in L.A. before being fired midway through the 1994-95 season.

He was hired by ESPN in 1996 as a studio and game analyst. He had a relatable everyman’s broadcasting style, bringing a sense of humor to his insights, and was easily recognized by his goatee and slicked-backed hair.

“From the flowing locks of his distinctive mullet to the flared lapels of his trademark long suit coats, Barry Melrose cut an unmistakable figure whenever you were fortunate enough to run into him at a rink or catch him on your television screen," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said.

“You were even more fortunate if you engaged him in conversation or listened to his analysis because he never failed to boost your love of the game of hockey.”

'It wasn't going to work' in Tampa Bay

After more than a decade in broadcasting, he was surprisingly lured back into coaching.

In June 2008, he was introduced as Tampa Bay's head coach by the team's new ownership, led by Hollywood producer Oren Koules and Len Barrie, a former NHL player who became a real estate developer.

Their OK Hockey group had just purchased the Lightning for $206 million from Palace Sports & Entertainment, a group led by Detroit Pistons owner Bill Davidson, which helped transform them from a last-place team into 2004 Stanley Cup champions.

Koules and Melrose knew each other from the coach's years in Los Angeles. However, Melrose was fired in November following a 5-7-4 start and replaced by assistant Rick Tocchet.

In his book, "Dropping the Gloves," Melrose wrote that, "Tampa Bay was an impossible scenario for a coach" because many players were friends with the owners, which created an "unhealthy situation" in the locker room."

"You can't be a disciplinarian and a buddy," he wrote. "You can't be disciplining guys, trying to convince them to do what you want, and have them out socializing with the owner. My termination was the right call because it wasn’t going to work and everyone could see that."

The Lightning's current ownership group issued a statement saying it was proud that Melrose is a part of the team's history.

“Barry Melrose was a larger-than-life figure whose impact on the game extended far beyond the rink," the Vinik Sports Group wrote. "As a player, coach and broadcaster, he inspired generations of hockey fans with his passion, personality and love for the sport. We are proud to have had him serve behind the Lightning bench and represent our organization. Barry will be deeply missed in Tampa Bay and across the hockey world.”

From Tampa, Melrose went back into TV until his Parkinson's diagnosis three years ago. At the time, hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, who played for Melrose in L.A., said the coach was “bigger than any team.”

"For decades, he's been suiting up - and I mean suiting up - for the game, for the sport, for hockey," Gretzky said in a video at the time. "You see, hockey is more than a game, it's a community - a finely tuned orchestra - and Barry was our conductor.”

Upon his retirement from ESPN, Melrose said, “I've had over 50 extraordinary years playing, coaching and analyzing the world's greatest game, hockey. It's now time to hang up my skates and focus on my health, my family, including my supportive wife Cindy, and whatever comes next.”

Began playing career with Cincinnati of WHA

Born on July 15, 1956, in rural Kelvington, Saskatchewan, Melrose was selected by the Canadiens in the second round (No. 36) of the 1976 NHL Draft. But he broke into pro hockey with the Cincinnati Stingers of the now-defunct World Hockey Association in 1976.

He played three seasons in Cincinnati — the last teaming with a young Mark Messier — and, following the WHA’s demise, made the transition to the NHL with Winnipeg in 1979.

Melrose went on to play for Toronto and Detroit, where he closed his career following the 1985-86 season.

He finished with 10 goals and 33 points and 728 penalty minutes in 300 career NHL regular-season games, and he skated in seven more in the playoffs. His WHA totals were five goals and 32 points and 343 penalty minutes in 178 games with Cincinnati.

His coaching career began in the 1987-88 season with Medicine Hat of the Western Hockey League, when he guided the team to a Memorial Cup championship. He later coached the Adirondack Red Wings to the American Hockey League's Calder Cup in 1992.

The following year, Melrose was hired by the Kings, where he brought a sense of colorful flare and instant success to Los Angeles. In his rookie season, he coached a Kings team that featured Gretzky to make a memorable playoff run.

“For decades, Barry Melrose was one of the most distinctive and trusted voices in hockey," ESPN said Wednsday in a statement. “His knowledge of the game was deep, his candor was refreshing and his passion was unmistakable.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.