Canadian • Born April 20, 1950 in Brandon, Manitoba •
Hometown: Virden, Man. • Died Jan. 7, 2015
Miscellaneous
Nickname: "Cowboy"
Post-Draft Teams: Fort Wayne (IHL); Brandon (WCHL); Charlotte, New Jersey, Long Island (EHL); Syracuse (NAHL)
Career Beyond Hockey: Moved to
Rapid City, Manitoba, after his retirement from both hockey and rodeo.
Based out of his Rapid City ranch, he worked as a livestock inspector
for the province of Saskatchewan at an office in Brandon, Manitoba. He
also worked as a part-time rider in PRFA Pastures, where he checked and
treated sick cattle. In the mid-1980s, he founded his M2 Ranch Hayrides
business in Brandon. The rides, which operate as Sleigh rides in the
winter months, became popular with Brandon (WHL) fans. .... Competed in
senior hockey and Oldtimers' hockey.
From the Rink to the Rodeo
Marshall regularly competed in rodeo
events during the summers after his retirement, winning a team roping
championship in the Manitoba Rodeo Association and later working as a
pick-up man at several rodeos. He has won numerous rodeo awards,
including the Manitoba Rodeo Cowboys Association 1995 Pick-up Man of the
Year.
The 'Slap Shot' Connection
During three weeks in the spring and
early summer of 1976,
just after he had completed his final pro hockey season with Syracuse of
the NAHL, Marshall worked as an extra in the movie "Slap Shot". The
film, based on the NAHL's Johnstown Jets, was shot in Johnstown,
Pa., and featured a large number of pro hockey players, primarily from the
NAHL. Director George Roy Hill had cast Paul Newman
in the starring role, but he wanted the bulk of players shown
competing in the film to be real hockey players, rather than actors.
Marshall was invited to be in the movie by Ned Dowd, a member of the
Jets whose sister wrote the "Slap Shot" screenplay with his help.
Marshall had fought with Dowd in the past, but Dowd, who personally
recruited many extras for the film, respected him and thought he would
be a good fit. Marshall appears in the film as one of the players on
opposing teams. He is notable for his thick black beard, which he grew
for the movie, and can be spotted wearing a Syracuse uniform in a scene
where Newman argues with the Syracuse team goon, Dr. Hook. For his work
on the movie, which involved six full days in costume for actual
filming, Marshall was paid $1,800 -- a much higher daily rate than he
had ever made as a player.
