Michael Robert Marson (born July 24, 1955) is a Canadian former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

left winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

who played six seasons in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

for the

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The Capitals compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NH ...

and the

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The Kings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. ...

from 1974 to 1979. He was the second

Black Canadian Black Canadians () are Canadians of full or partial Afro-Caribbean or sub-Saharan African descent. Black Canadian settlement and immigration patterns can be categorized into two distinct groups. The majority of Black Canadians are descendants ...

to play in the NHL.

Hockey career

Amateur

As a youth, Marson played in the 1968

Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament The Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament () is an annual minor ice hockey event in Quebec City. The tournament was founded in 1960 to coincide with the Quebec Winter Carnival, and give an opportunity for international competition to p ...

with a

minor ice hockey Minor ice hockey or minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body c ...

team from

Wexford, Toronto Wexford is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the eastern part of the city, on the western end of the district of Scarborough, spanning Lawrence Avenue East between Victoria Park Avenue and Birchmount Road. There a ...

. During the

1973–74 OHA season This is a list of OHA standings and season-by-season summaries of the Ontario Hockey League, Ontario Hockey Association's Junior A division from 1933 to 1972, and its Tier I division from 1972 to 1974. ;Legend * GP = games played * W = wins * ...

, he was named a second team all-star, and led the

Sudbury Wolves The Sudbury Wolves are an Ontario Hockey League (OHL) ice hockey team based in Greater Sudbury, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. Sudbury has had various hockey teams competing at the Junior ice hockey, junior and senior ice hockey levels of the game k ...

with 94 points at age 18.

Professional

Marson was drafted as the first pick of the 2nd Round, 19th overall, by the

in the 1974 NHL Entry Draft. He signed a five-year contract with the Capitals and would become the second

to play in the NHL, following

Willie O'Ree William Eldon O'Ree (born October 15, 1935) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player from Fredericton, New Brunswick. He is widely recognized for being the first black player in the National Hockey League (NHL), playing as a winger ...

. He was available in the

1974 NHL Amateur Draft The 1974 NHL amateur draft was the 12th NHL entry draft. It was held via conference call at the NHL office in Montreal, Quebec. In an effort to prevent the WHA from poaching players, the draft was conducted early and in secret. This failed to ...

because of league's decision to allow drafting of underage players that year. His first NHL game was also the first game in Washington Capitals franchise history played on October 9, 1974. He recorded his best NHL season as a rookie when he scored 16 goals, added 12 assists for 28 points in 76 games. Marson claims to have encountered discrimination early in his first season, and has recalled having the racial slurs "

nigger In the English language, ''nigger'' is a racial slur directed at black people. Starting in the 1990s, references to ''nigger'' have been increasingly replaced by the euphemistic contraction , notably in cases where ''nigger'' is Use–menti ...

" and "

sambo Sambo may refer to: Places * Sambo, Angola, a commune in Tchicala Tcholohanga, Huambo Province, Angola * Sambo Creek, a village in Honduras People * Ferdy Sambo (born 1973), former Indonesian police general * Khem Sambo (1961–2011), Cambodi ...

" yelled at him during his first game at

Maple Leaf Gardens Maple Leaf Gardens is a historic building located at the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church and Wellesley, Church Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The building was originally constructed in 1931 as an indoor arena to host ice hoc ...

against the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...

. His teammates expressed how the slurs and taunts adversely impacted Marson: "There were racial slurs that were fired and he'd be quick o react He had a short fuse. The next thing you knew, he'd be involved in something. It was hard for him to work on his game. And he could skate. He was one of the best skaters in the league, but he spent so much energy having to defend himself," said teammate Ron Lalonde. He also was the target of numerous death threats. Marson struggled with weight problems and alcoholism during his career. In all, Marson played 196 games in the NHL (193 with Washington and three with Los Angeles). He totaled 48 points on 24 goals and 24 assists and amassed 233 penalty minutes. During his career in the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

, Marson played for the

Baltimore Clippers The Baltimore Clippers were a minor league professional ice hockey team from in Baltimore, Maryland, playing in the Baltimore Civic Center. The Clippers were members of the American Hockey League from 1962 to 1976, and then played one season i ...

Springfield Indians The Springfield Indians were two separate minor professional ice hockey franchises, originally based in West Springfield, Massachusetts and later Springfield, Massachusetts. The original Indians were founding members of the American Hockey Leagu ...

Hershey Bears The Hershey Bears are a professional ice hockey team based in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The Bears have played in the American Hockey League (AHL) since the 1938–39 season, making it the longest continuously operating member club of the league still ...

Philadelphia Firebirds The Philadelphia Firebirds were a minor league professional ice hockey team that played in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from 1974 to 1979, and later the franchise moved to Syracuse, New York, and played one final season as the Syracuse Firebirds ...

, and

Binghamton Dusters The Binghamton Dusters were an ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They played in Binghamton, New York, USA at the Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena. The team logo was designed by Johnny Hart, artist of the comic strip " B.C." an ...

Personal life

Marson attended classes at the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

during his playing days in Washington. At age 17, while playing junior hockey in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, he suffered the loss of his mother who died unexpectedly of a brain aneurysm. Nearly four years later, he was dealt another personal tragedy when his younger brother passed suddenly at the age of 20. After his hockey playing career ended in 1980 he studied

Martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

. Marson became a seventh degree black belt in the

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese style of

Shotokan is a style of karate, developed from various martial arts by Gichin Funakoshi (1868–1957) and his son Gigo (Yoshitaka) Funakoshi (1906–1945). Gichin Funakoshi was born in Okinawa and is widely credited with popularizing "karate do" thro ...

, attaining the status of Master-Shihan. Marson has developed an off-ice martial arts training program for hockey players designed to improve timing, focus and confidence. Former NHL player

Rick Nash Richard Nash (born June 16, 1984) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who serves as the director of player development for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). After being selected List of first overall ...

was a student of the program.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

*
Profile at hockeydraftcentral.com

Hockey Fight School
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marson, Mike 1955 births Living people Baltimore Clippers players Binghamton Dusters players Black Canadian ice hockey players Black Canadian sportsmen Canadian ice hockey left wingers Canadian male karateka Hershey Bears players Ice hockey people from Scarborough, Ontario Los Angeles Kings players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Philadelphia Firebirds (AHL) players Springfield Indians players Sudbury Wolves players Washington Capitals draft picks Washington Capitals players 20th-century Canadian sportsmen