The Montreal Canadiens in the 1966 Amateur Draft selected Phil Myre, best known as one half of the netminding duo of the early Atlanta Flames. The Canadiens took the goaltender following an unsuccessful, though long, performance by Shawinigan in the Memorial Cup playoffs. He got to hoist the Memorial Cup two years later when he backstopped a Niagara Falls team to victory.
It wasn't until the 1969-70 season that Myre saw action with the Canadiens. In ten games, he put up a 4-3-2 record and a 2.27 GAA, but it wasn't enough to impress the team. He was carried as a backup for the next two seasons before the Canadiens left him unprotected in the 1972 Expansion Draft.
The Atlanta Flames took the slender goalkeeper. His ability to stop shooters from close range was thought to be a good quality for an expansion team netminder to have. For the next five seasons, the Flames had him battling Dan Bouchard for playing time in the Atlanta net. The competition came to a head in the 1977-78 season until Myre was traded to the St. Louis Blues.
In St. Louis, Myre had a chance to shine. After the trade, he played 44 of the team's 51 games. That stretch included a 28-consecutive games played stretch and one NHL Player of the Week honour for a shutout streak that lasted 131 minutes and 42 seconds. Unfortunately, the Blues were not as talented at the time in putting the puck in an opponent's net. Myre ended the season with an 11-25-8 record.
The Blues kept Myre for one more season before he moved to the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers coach, Pat Quinn, had played in front of Myre throughout most of his time in Atlanta. Quinn intended to follow the Atlanta example and alternate between Myre and rookie Pete Peeters.
Peeters and Myre exceeded expectations as they helped keep the Flyers record a 35-game unbeaten streak. In the playoffs, Myre came up big in the series against Minnesota by recording all four victories. Unfortunately, the Flyers lost in the finals to the New York Islanders.
Myre played three more seasons in the NHL for the Flyers, Colorado Rockies, and Buffalo Sabres before finishing with the Mike Keenan-coached Rochester Americans in the AHL. Myre has served as a coach for Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago, and Ottawa since his playing career ended.
