Crisp got his start playing Jr. 'B' hockey with the St. Marys Lincolns of the Western Jr. 'B' Hockey League. In 1961 he edged out Phil Esposito of the Sarnia Legionnaires for the league scoring title. Crisp began his pro career in the Boston Bruins organization, playing one season for them before being chosen by the St. Louis Blues in the 1967 NHL expansion draft. With the Blues, he went to the finals three straight seasons. In 1972, he was again chosen in the expansion draft, this time by the New York Islanders. Late in the 1972–73 season, he was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for Jean Potvin. It is believed the trade was made because the Islanders, who would have the first overall pick in the upcoming draft, intended to draft Denis Potvin, and believed having his older brother on the team would entice him to sign with the Isles instead of going to the rival World Hockey Association. Crisp played on the notorious Philadelphia Flyers teams of the 1970s when they were also known as the Broad Street Bullies. He won two Stanley Cups as a member of the Flyers in 1973–74 and 1974–75.
Coaching career
Crisp retired two games into the 1976-77 season at the age of 33 to become the Flyers assistant coach under Fred Shero. In the 1980s, he coached in the junior ranks and led the 1985 Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds to an undefeated seasonat home, going 33-0. The club finished first in the Ontario Hockey League with 54 wins, eleven losses, and one tie. The club set a Canadian junior record by winning 33 games in a row at home. The Sault also took the OHL playoff championship, losing just two games, both at home. The Greyhounds represented the OHL at the Memorial Cup, where they came up short, losing to eventual champion Prince Albert of the WHL. Thanks to his tremendous coaching success in junior, Crisp was named head coach of the Calgary Flames in 1987-88, following two years as the head coach of the team's AHL affiliate in Moncton. Despite a strong record and a Stanley Cup championship in 1989 over the Montreal Canadiens, Crisp and some of the team's players always seemed to be at odds with one another. After the Flames followed up their Stanley Cup victory with a first-round exit in 1990, Crisp was fired. He then coached the Tampa Bay Lightning from their inception in 1992 until 1997.
