Manson played junior hockey with his hometown Prince Albert Raiders in the Western Hockey League. He was drafted 11th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1985 NHL Entry Draft and joined the team a year later. He also played for the Edmonton Oilers, Winnipeg Jets/Phoenix Coyotes, Montreal Canadiens, Dallas Stars and Toronto Maple Leafs. He retired in 2002 with 390 points and 2792 penalty minutes in 1103 career NHL games. Since his retirement he has worked as an assistant coach with the Prince Albert Raiders. Manson is perhaps best remembered for his low, raspy, voice, the result of taking a punch to the throat from Sergio Momesso during a game. The force of Momesso's punch damaged his larynx permanently.
March 15, 1994 – Traded from Edmonton Oilers with 6th round pick (Chris Kibermanis) to Winnipeg Jets for Mats Lindgren, Boris Mironov, 1st round pick (Jason Bonsignore) and 4th round pick (Adam Copeland).
Manson and his wife, Lana have four children and currently reside in Christopher Lake, Saskatchewan. Their son, Josh is a defenseman for the Anaheim Ducks, while their daughter, Meagan plays on the women's soccer team at the University of Saskatchewan. The couple also have twins; a son, Benjamin and a daughter, Emma.
Career statistics
--- Regular season --- ---- Playoffs ----Season Team Lge GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1983-84 Prince Albert Raiders WHL 70 2 7 9 233 5 0 0 0 41984-85 Prince Albert Raiders WHL 72 8 30 38 247 13 1 0 1 341985-86 Prince Albert Raiders WHL 70 14 34 48 177 20 1 8 9 631986-87 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 63 1 8 9 146 3 0 0 0 101987-88 Saginaw Hawks IHL 6 0 3 3 37 -- -- -- -- --1987-88 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 54 1 6 7 185 5 0 0 0 271988-89 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 79 18 36 54 352 16 0 8 8 841989-90 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 59 5 23 28 301 20 2 4 6 461990-91 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 75 14 15 29 191 6 0 1 1 361991-92 Edmonton Oilers NHL 79 15 32 47 220 16 3 9 12 441992-93 Edmonton Oilers NHL 83 15 30 45 210 -- -- -- -- --1993-94 Edmonton Oilers NHL 57 3 13 16 140 -- -- -- -- --1993-94 Winnipeg Jets NHL 13 1 4 5 51 -- -- -- -- --1994-95 Winnipeg Jets NHL 44 3 15 18 139 -- -- -- -- --1995-96 Winnipeg Jets NHL 82 7 23 30 205 6 2 1 3 301996-97 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 66 3 17 20 164 -- -- -- -- --1996-97 Montreal Canadiens NHL 9 1 1 2 23 5 0 0 0 171997-98 Montreal Canadiens NHL 81 4 30 34 122 10 0 1 1 141998-99 Montreal Canadiens NHL 11 0 2 2 48 -- -- -- -- --1998-99 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 64 6 15 21 107 -- -- -- -- --1999-00 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 37 0 7 7 40 -- -- -- -- --1999-00 Dallas Stars NHL 26 1 2 3 22 23 0 0 0 332000-01 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 74 4 7 11 93 2 0 0 0 22001-02 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 13 0 1 1 10 -- -- -- -- --2001-02 Utah Grizzlies AHL 2 0 0 0 2 -- -- -- -- --2001-02 Dallas Stars NHL 34 0 1 1 23 -- -- -- -- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NHL totals 1103 102 288 390 2792 112 7 24 31 343
Coaching statistics
Season Team Lge Type 2002-03 Prince Albert Raiders WHL Assistant coach 2004-05 Prince Albert Raiders WHL Assistant coach 2005-06 Prince Albert Raiders WHL Assistant coach 2008-09 Prince Albert Mintos SMAAAHL Assistant coach