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Aired November 8,
2006 at 9pm
on CBC-TV
& November 10, 2006
at 10pm ET
on CBC Newsworld

WATCH the fifth estate ONLINE:

Watch this story online.

Runs 41:53
REPORTER: Hana Gartner
PRODUCER: Marie Caloz
SENIOR ASSOCIATE PRODUCER: Howard Goldenthal
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER: Christina Heidorn

WEB EXCLUSIVE:

Canadian forensic expert Myriam Nafte gives the fifth estate her analysis of the circumstances of Duncan MacPherson's death.
Watch her interview online.

Runs 14:35
Video available in Windows Media Player.

BIOGRAPHY: DUNCAN MACPHERSON

Duncan MacPherson played for the Springfield Indians in the American hockey league, but never made it to the NHL.

For more photos of see the photogallery.

Duncan MacPherson was born on February 3, 1966 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, the hometown of hockey great Gordie Howe.

He began playing hockey at age five and quickly became a fixture on the neighbourhood outdoor rink. His talent was soon recognized and by age 12, hockey had become a serious pursuit for Duncan.

A hard-working hockey player

At 16 years of age, Duncan played Tier II Major Junior in North Battleford. In 1982, at the age of 17, he joined the Saskatoon Blades in the Western Hockey League as a junior defenseman. Duncan was considered one of the hardest hitters in the league and had a style reminiscent of the old days of hockey.

He was known as a strong, very fit player who trained hard and liked to push his body as hard as he could. Halfway through that season he suffered a bad ankle injury; several other injuries interfered somewhat with his development. Duncan became a first round draft pick of the New York Islanders in 1984 at the age of 18. He was picked 20th in the year when Mario Lemieux was the first overall draft pick. Other first draft picks that year include Kirk Muller, Petr Svoboda and Ed Olczyk.

MacPherson was known as a hard hitting player.

Just short of an NHL career

Known for his work ethic, energy and enthusiasm, Duncan made up for not being the best player on the team by consistently playing hard. He joined the New York Islanders' minor league team, The Springfield Indians in Massachusetts in the American Hockey League, in 1986, for two and a half years. During that time, Duncan wore the Islanders jersey only once outside of pre-season competition: on March 3, 1988 he was called up to the Islanders to replace injured defenseman Gord Dineen, but Dineen decided to play after all, relegating Duncan to the spectator stands.

After his time with the Indians, Duncan spent half a year with the International Hockey League's Indianapolis Ice. His contract with the Islanders expired in April 1989. Although he didn't lack the will or determination to become an NHL player, it wasn't enough to make the NHL, despite high expectations.

When it became clear that he wasn't going to have an NHL career, he decided to pursue other avenues. At age 23, he landed a job as player-coach with the Dundee Tigers in Dundee, Scotland. Before heading to Scotland, Duncan decided to take a short trip to Austria. It was during this trip that he disappeared.

Read Duncan MacPherson's hockey stats.

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