Mel Bridgman


Melvin John Bridgman for five teams from 1975–76 until 1988–89. He participated in two Stanley Cup Finals with the Philadelphia Flyers and was the team captain for both the Flyers and the New Jersey Devils during his career. He later would become a player agent and front office executive, serving as the first general manager of the contemporary Ottawa Senators franchise.
Bridgman was born in Trenton, Ontario, but grew up in Thunder Bay, Ontario, before moving to Victoria, British Columbia.

Playing career

Bridgman was drafted first overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1975 NHL Amateur Draft. He played 977 career NHL games, scoring 252 goals and 449 assists for 701 points, as well as adding 1625 penalty minutes. His best offensive season was the 1981–82 season, when he set career highs with 33 goals, 54 assists, and 87 points. Throughout his career Bridgman was known as a consistent offensive contributor, a smart defensive centre, and a gritty, hard-nosed, power forward who would check and fight regularly.

Post-playing career

After his playing career, Bridgman earned a masters degree from the Wharton School of [the University of Pennsylvania] in business administration. He parlayed that into a position as the general manager of the expansion Ottawa Senators in 1991 ahead of the team's entry into the NHL in 1992.
Bridgman's tenure as general manager only lasted one season, marked by the team's ineptitude and his own problems with drafting talent; in fact, three separate times during the 1992 [NHL Expansion Draft|expansion draft], due in large part to Senators management forgetting to bring a power supply or batteries to power the computer the team's draft information was stored on, Bridgman made three illegal selections and was forced to apologize for each one. After the Senators finish with a 10-70-4 record, Bridgman was dismissed from his role.

Personal life and death

Bridgman went into finance after his firing, working for Smith Barney in California. He was married and had at least one child.
Bridgman died from heart failure on November 6, 2025, at the age of 70.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards