Singing the Blues: St. Louis dismisses Murray as head coach

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01/02/2010 - St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Blues on Saturday fired bench boss Andy Murray and named Davis Payne interim head coach.

The 58-year-old Murray was hired by the Blues in December of 2006, replacing Mike Kitchen. He was a Jack Adams runner-up as Coach of the Year last season after guiding St. Louis, which took up residence in the cellar of the Western Conference at the All-Star break, to a 41-31-10 record and the club's first playoff berth since 2004. The Blues were swept by Vancouver in the opening round.

St. Louis, however, has struggled to find consistency this season, currently sitting 12th in the conference standings and nine points out of the final playoff spot with a 17-17-6 record.

"I would like to thank Andy Murray for the job he has done here the past four seasons," said Blues president John Davidson. "He was an integral part in turning the St. Louis Blues around. He is a true professional and I wish him the best of luck in the future."

Murray finishes his tenure in the Gateway City with a mark of 118-102-38.

Payne, 39, was named the head coach of the Peoria Rivermen, St. Louis' American Hockey League affiliate, in July, 2008. The club has a 62-44-3-6 record since Payne took over behind the bench.

"Davis is very knowledgeable of the players in our organization and we feel he is the best candidate to coach our team," Davidson added. "He has nine winning seasons at the minor league level which includes an ECHL Championship in 2006."

The 2006-07 ECHL Coach of the Year, Payne led the Alaska Aces to the 2006 Kelly Cup title and will make his debut on St. Louis' bench in Saturday night's home contest versus the Chicago Blackhawks.

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