Matt Murray (ice hockey)

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Matt Murray
Matt Murray 1 2016-03-01.JPG
Murray with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016
Born (1994-05-25) May 25, 1994 (age 27)
Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada
Height 6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
Weight 178 lb (81 kg; 12 st 10 lb)
Position Goaltender
Catches Left
NHL team (P)
Cur. team
Former teams
Ottawa Senators
Belleville Senators (AHL)
Pittsburgh Penguins
National team  Canada
NHL Draft 83rd overall, 2012
Pittsburgh Penguins
Playing career 2014–present

Matthew Murray (born May 25, 1994) is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing for the Belleville Senators of the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). Murray was selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the third round (83rd overall) of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. In 2016, Murray won his first Stanley Cup championship as the starting goalie for the Penguins during the playoffs after having replaced then-starter Marc-Andre Fleury. Murray would split the net with Fleury during the 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs, winning the Stanley Cup again in 2017. Murray became the first goaltender to win back-to-back Stanley Cups as a rookie. Murray was traded in 2020 to the Ottawa Senators.

Playing career[]

Early career[]

Murray was born and raised in Thunder Bay, Ontario and played his minor hockey with the Thunder Bay Minor Hockey Association. He spent his younger years playing AA before moving up to the Thunder Bay Kings AAA program.

In his minor midget season (2009–10), Murray led his Kings to a 3–2–0 record at the OHL Cup. That season with the Kings, Murray appeared in 40 games with a 2.28 GAA and six shutouts. He was subsequently selected in the second round (35th overall) of the 2010 by the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.

Murray played major junior hockey in the Ontario Hockey League with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. On September 4, 2013, Murray was signed to a three-year entry-level contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.[1]

Pittsburgh Penguins[]

During his first full professional season with the Penguins AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in 2014–15, on March 8, 2015, Murray set an AHL record for the longest shutout streak by not allowing any goals for 304 minutes and 11 seconds. The previous record of 268:17 was held by Barry Brust.[2]

On March 22, Murray recorded his tenth shutout of the season, breaking a record for rookie AHL goaltenders set by Gordie Bell in 1942–43.[3] He would finish the regular season with 12 shutouts. Murray capped his standout rookie season by sweeping the AHL awards, he was selected to the AHL First All-Star Team and Rookie Team, while winning the Baz Bastien Memorial Award as the League's best goaltender and the Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award as best rookie.

Murray in net for the Penguins for the first game of their second round series against the Capitals in 2016.

In the 2015–16 season, Murray was recalled from the AHL for the first time to the Pittsburgh Penguins on December 15, 2015 and made his NHL debut on December 19, 2015 in a 2–1 loss against the Carolina Hurricanes.[4][5] Murray was recalled again by the Pittsburgh Penguins on February 21, 2016[6] and started nine games to finish the season.

On April 19, 2016 the 21-year old Murray made his NHL playoff debut in game three of the first round becoming the youngest goalie in franchise history to start a post-season game.[7] He allowed just one goal as the Penguins defeated the New York Rangers 3–1.[8] Just two days later, Murray recorded his first NHL playoff shutout in a 5–0 win over the Rangers.[9]

Murray remained the starting goaltender throughout the 2016 playoffs. After being replaced by veteran Marc-André Fleury, who returned from injury in game five of the third round, he started in all remainder games of the 2016 Stanley Cup playoffs. Murray led the Penguins past the San Jose Sharks in the finals to the franchise's fourth Stanley Cup.[10] He posted an impressive .923 save percentage and 2.08 GAA throughout the playoffs and became only the sixth starting rookie goaltender in the Stanley Cup Finals since 1976.[11]

Murray was then re-signed by the Penguins to a three-year contract with an annual average salary of $3.75 million.

Murray won the Stanley Cup in 2016 and 2017.

To start the 2016–17 season, Murray was injured due to a broken hand sustained during international play. Following his return, he supplanted the veteran Fleury as the Penguins starter, and retained his elite form from his first year. During the season, he recorded 32 wins, a .923 save percentage, 2.41 GAA, and four shutouts. He finished within the top ten of the NHL amongst qualifying goaltenders in wins, save percentage, and shutouts, while finishing 11th in GAA. This elite play allowed Murray to finish fourth in Calder Trophy voting for Rookie of the Year, and earned Murray a spot on the 2016–17 All-Rookie Team and the 2017 NHL All-Playoff Team.

He recorded his first NHL point on December 8, 2016, an assist on an empty net goal.[12]

During warm-ups of game one of the Penguins' first-round matchup versus the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs, Murray was injured and Fleury took starting position. He saw his first action of the 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs in game three of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Ottawa Senators after Fleury was pulled. He recorded a shutout two games later, stopping all 25 shots he faced in a 7–0 win.[13] A thrilling game seven overtime win helped Murray and the Penguins reach the Stanley Cup Finals for the second year in a row. Despite two solid starts in the first two games against the Nashville Predators, Murray's game faltered in games three and four.[14] As a result, there were speculations on who would start in the fifth game.[15] Murray was announced as the starter and stopped all 24 shots the Nashville Predators shot at him in a 6–0 win.[16] Murray made 27 saves in game six, shutting out the Predators 2–0 and winning the Stanley Cup for the second consecutive season.[17]

During the 2017–18 NHL season Murray sustained his second concussion during practice. On February 26, 2018, during practice, Murray was struck in the head with a puck shot by teammate and defenseman Olli Maatta and was forced to leave the session early.[18] Murray had previously sustained a concussion in the 2015–16 season causing him to miss the first two games of the playoffs.[18] Matt Murray returned from his February 2018 concussion, as the Penguins' starting goaltender, on March 20, 2018, against the New York Islanders. Murray allowed four goals in the Penguins' 4–1 loss during that game.[19]

Murray recorded the longest playoff shutout streak in Penguins franchise history at 225:49. It started during game four of the 2017 Stanley Cup Finals and ended in game two of the Penguins' 2018 first round series against the Philadelphia Flyers, when Shayne Gostisbehere scored late in the first period.[20] On April 18, 2018, Murray became the fastest goaltender to record 25 playoff wins in the NHL.[21] On April 23, 2018, Murray was nominated for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy as a player who best exemplifies leadership qualities and gives back to in his community.[22] Despite Murrays efforts, Pittsburgh ended up losing to the Washington Capitals in six games in the second round of the playoffs.

Murray was the starting goaltender for the Penguins to begin the 2018–19 season. After starting two games, Murray was diagnosed with a concussion following practice on October 8 and was ruled out indefinitely.[23] He returned to the line-up on October 13 as a backup to Casey DeSmith[24] only to be placed on injured reserve again in November due to a lower body injury.[25]

Murray and the Penguins were swept by the New York Islanders in the first round of the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs; Murray recorded a 3.01 goals against average for the series.

On October 12, 2019, Murray recorded his 100th NHL win, a 7–4 victory over the Minnesota Wild; he accomplished the feat in only 166 games, tying Pete Peeters for seventh fastest since the 1967 expansion.[26]

Ottawa Senators[]

On October 7, 2020, as an impending restricted free agent, Murray was traded by the Penguins to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for and a second-round pick in 2020.[27] On October 9, Murray signed a four-year, $25 million contract extension with the Senators.[28]

During his second year under contract, Murray opened the 2021–22 season by going winless in his opening six appearances. On November 28, 2021, Murray was placed on waivers and later demoted to regain his game with AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators, the following day after going unclaimed.[29]

International play[]

Medal record
Ice hockey
Representing  Canada
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2019 Slovakia
World U18 Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2012 Czech Republic

Murray represented Team North America at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, as starting goalie.[30] On September 19, he broke his hand playing against Russia but went undiagnosed for several days before getting an MRI and confirmed with a broken ligament.[31]

On April 29, 2019, Murray was named as the first choice goaltender to backstop Canada at the 2019 IIHF World Championship held in Slovakia.[32] Recording five wins in seven games, Murray helped Canada progress through to the playoff rounds before losing the final to Finland to finish with the Silver Medal on May 26, 2019.[33]

Personal life[]

Murray's father, who died in January 2018,[34][35] was from Scotland and his mother is from the Netherlands.[36] He married his high school sweetheart Christina Sirignano on June 20, 2019.

Career statistics[]

Regular season and playoffs[]

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP W L T/OT MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2009–10 Thunder Bay Kings Min. Midget HNO 40 1975 75 6 2.28 0
2010–11 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 28 8 11 3 1377 87 1 3.79 .887
2011–12 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 36 13 19 1 1912 130 0 4.08 .876
2012–13 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 53 26 19 4 2910 178 1 3.67 .894 6 2 4 381 17 1 2.67 .910
2013–14 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 49 32 11 6 2984 128 6 2.57 .921 9 4 5 547 24 1 2.63 .915
2013–14 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 1 0 1 0 60 2 0 2.00 .920 1 0 0 20 0 0 0.00 1.000
2014–15 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 40 25 10 3 2321 61 12 1.58 .941 8 4 4 456 18 1 2.37 .923
2015–16 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 13 9 2 1 749 25 1 2.00 .930 21 15 6 1268 44 1 2.08 .923
2016–17 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 49 32 10 4 2766 111 4 2.41 .923 11 7 3 669 19 3 1.70 .937
2017–18 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 49 27 16 3 2733 133 1 2.92 .907 12 6 6 716 29 2 2.43 .908
2018–19 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 50 29 14 6 2880 129 4 2.69 .919 4 0 4 239 12 0 3.01 .906
2019–20 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 38 20 11 5 2238 107 1 2.87 .899 3 1 2 192 8 0 2.50 .914
2020–21 Ottawa Senators NHL 27 10 13 1 1405 79 2 3.38 .893
NHL totals 226 127 66 20 12,770 584 13 2.74 .912 51 29 21 3,083 112 6 2.18 .921

International[]

Year Team Event Result GP W L T MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2012 Canada WJC18 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 7 4 3 0 421 19 0 2.72 .920
2016 Team North America WCH 5th 2 1 1 0 95 5 0 3.16 .866
2019 Canada WC 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 7 5 2 0 418 14 1 2.01 .926
Junior totals 7 4 3 0 421 19 0 2.72 .920
Senior totals 9 6 3 0 513 19 1 2.22 .918

Awards and honours[]

Award Year
OHL
Second All-Star Team 2014 [37]
AHL
All-Rookie Team 2015 [38]
Best GAA (1.58) 2015 [39]
Best SVS% (.941) 2015 [39]
Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award 2015 [40]
Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award 2015 [41]
Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award 2015 [42]
First All-Star Team 2015 [43]
NHL
Stanley Cup Champion 2016, 2017 [44][45]
Prince of Wales Trophy 2016, 2017 [46][47]
NHL All-Rookie Team 2017 [48]
Michel Brière Rookie of the Year Award 2016 [49]
Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Good Guy Award 2018

References[]

  1. ^ "Penguins sign Goaltender Matt Murray". Pittsburgh Penguins. September 4, 2013. Retrieved September 4, 2013.
  2. ^ "Murray sets shutout streak record at 304:11". American Hockey League. March 8, 2015. Archived from the original on March 10, 2015. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  3. ^ "Penguins' Murray sets another record". American Hockey League. March 23, 2015. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
  4. ^ "Penguins Recall Goaltender Matt Murray and Forwards Conor Sheary and Kevin Porter". Pittsburgh Penguins. December 15, 2015.
  5. ^ "3 Impressions: Canes 2, Pens 1". Pittsburgh Penguins. December 19, 2015.
  6. ^ "Penguins Recall Goaltender Matt Murray". Pittsburgh Penguins. February 21, 2016.
  7. ^ Simmons, Jeff (April 19, 2016). "Not just Murray: Five youngest NHL goalies to make a playoff start". Sportsnet.ca. Sportsnet. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  8. ^ "Matt Murray wins playoff debut". National Hockey League. April 20, 2016.
  9. ^ "'Mature beyond his years,' Murray lifts Penguins". National Hockey League. April 21, 2016.
  10. ^ Rossi, Rob. "Rossi: Appreciate Penguins' long-awaited return to Stanley Cup Final". TribLIVE.com.
  11. ^ "By one strange stat, Penguins have advantage over Sharks in Stanley Cup finals quest". May 26, 2016.
  12. ^ "Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Florida Panthers". TSN.
  13. ^ "Fluery, Murray make Penguins postseason history". pit.247sports.com. June 1, 2017. Archived from the original on June 12, 2017. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  14. ^ "Fleury replaces Murray for Penguins in Game 4". National Hockey League. May 20, 2016. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  15. ^ Rosen, Dan (June 6, 2017). "Penguins won't commit to starting Matt Murray in Game 5 of Cup Final". National Hockey League. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  16. ^ Stubbs, Dave (June 9, 2017). "Matt Murray bounces back to get shutout for Penguins in Game 5". National Hockey League. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  17. ^ Stanley, Robby (June 11, 2017). "Penguins shutout Predators to claim Stanley Cup". National Hockey League. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  18. ^ a b Werner, Sam (February 27, 2018). "Penguins goalie Matt Murray diagnosed with a concussion". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  19. ^ Bombulie, Jonathan (March 20, 2018). "Penguins underwhelm in loss as Matt Murray returns". Tribune Live. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
  20. ^ Hagerman, Craig (April 14, 2018). "Murray's playoff shutout streak ends at nearly 4 full games". MSN. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  21. ^ Leahy, Sean (April 18, 2018). "Penguins follow Matt Murray's lead, take Game 4 over Flyers". nhl.nbcsports.com. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  22. ^ "NHL announces 31 team nominees for King Clancy Trophy". National Hockey League. April 23, 2018. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  23. ^ Crosby, Wes (October 9, 2018). "Murray out with concussion for Penguins". National Hockey League. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  24. ^ Bombulie, Jonathan (October 13, 2018). "Penguins goalie Matt Murray to back up Casey DeSmith in first game back from concussion". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  25. ^ "Pens place goalie Matt Murray on IR with lower-body injury". ESPN.com. November 22, 2018. Retrieved November 23, 2018.
  26. ^ NHL Public Relations [@PR_NHL] (October 12, 2019). "Matt Murray required the fewest games in @penguins history to record his 100th career win, while becoming the eighth goaltender in the NHL since 1967-68 to do so in 166 games or less. #NHLStats" (Tweet). Retrieved October 14, 2019 – via Twitter.
  27. ^ "Ottawa Senators acquire Goaltender Matt Murray from Pittsburgh". Ottawa Senators. October 7, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
  28. ^ "Ottawa Senators sign goaltender Matt Murray to a four-year contract". Ottawa Senators. October 9, 2020. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
  29. ^ "Murray clears waivers, assigned to Belleville of the AHL". NESN. November 29, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  30. ^ "Team North America announces it's [sic] starting goaltender". September 1, 2016.
  31. ^ Crosby, Wes (September 26, 2016). "Matt Murray was 'shocked' by broken hand". Cranberry, PA: National Hockey League. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  32. ^ "Hockey Canada names 22 players to 2019 IIHF World Championship roster". Hockey Canada. April 29, 2019. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  33. ^ "Finland defeats Canada for Gold Medal at World Championship". The Sports Network. May 26, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  34. ^ Gretz, Adam (January 17, 2018). "Matt Murray to miss 'indefinite period of time' following passing of his father". nbcsports.com. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  35. ^ The Associated Press (January 17, 2018). "Penguins' Matt Murray taking leave after father's death". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  36. ^ "Murray Discusses Helmet Design". National Hockey League. May 21, 2016. Archived from the original on May 21, 2016.
  37. ^ "Murray, Nurse named to OHL all-star teams". Sault Star. May 14, 2014. Archived from the original on September 28, 2014. Retrieved May 14, 2014.
  38. ^ "Murray Named to 2014–15 AHL All-Rookie Team". Pittsburgh Penguins. May 2, 2015. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
  39. ^ a b "After top goalie and rookie nods, Matt Murray to start 2015–16 in AHL". The Hockey News. April 1, 2015. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  40. ^ "Matt Murray, Jeff Zatkoff Win AHL'S Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award". Pittsburgh Penguins. April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  41. ^ "Murray named AHL's rookie of the year". American Hockey League. May 2, 2015. Archived from the original on May 5, 2015. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
  42. ^ "Murray Named Winner of Baz Bastien Award". Pittsburgh Penguins. April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  43. ^ "First, Second Team AHL All-Stars named". American Hockey League. May 2, 2015. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
  44. ^ "Penguins win Stanley Cup, defeat Sharks in Game 6". National Hockey League. June 12, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
  45. ^ "Penguins repeat as Stanley Cup champions". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. June 11, 2017. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  46. ^ Crosby, Wes (May 27, 2016). "Penguins defeat Lightning, Stamkos in Game 7". National Hockey League. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  47. ^ Crosby, Wes (May 26, 2017). "Penguins defeat Senators in 2OT of Game 7, return to Cup Final". National Hockey League. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  48. ^ "NHL announces 2016–17 All-Rookie Team". National Hockey League. June 21, 2017. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  49. ^ "Congratulations to Matt Murray (@mattmurray_30) on earning this year's #Pens Rookie Award, presented by @Highmark". Pittsburgh Penguins Twitter. April 4, 2017. Retrieved January 22, 2019.

External links[]

Awards
Preceded by Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award
2014–15
Succeeded by
Preceded by Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award
2014–15
With: Jeff Zatkoff
Succeeded by
Preceded by Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award
2014–15
Succeeded by
Retrieved from ""