Pittsburgh Penguins: Matt Murray’s Cinderella Story
Matt Murray is a really good goalie. That’s not news. What is news, though, is just how far he’s come to get the where he is now.
The Pittsburgh Penguins‘ goaltending situation is in the best place it’s been in years. The team itself is the best it’s been since their last Stanley Cup win in 2009. The coaching staff is effective and smart. We know all these things.
We might be able to call the Penguins a Cinderella Story, if we twist the plot a little bit. They were never really that bad to begin with, never really fit the “rags” part of the rags-to-riches tale. However, their development from the start of the season to now definitely matches that narrative of improvement – if through a little more hard work than magic.
Matt Murray is no small part of that, especially in the last couple of months. Depending on how you want to interpret it, the young goaltender is our very own Fairy Godmother… or Cinderella.
When he was called to action in Pittsburgh, it took him a game to get his feet under him. But once he was adjusted to the pace of the higher-level game, there was no looking back. Following Marc-Andre Fleury‘s concussion near the end of the season, Murray became one of the key players in the organization and has refused to relinquish the role.
While the Penguins were already hot, hot, hot, by that point and he didn’t really have to turn a pumpkin into a carriage, he’s kept them in games more than once and has been an incredibly effective playoff backstop. He easily took care of the New York Rangers in the first round, and though the series against the Washington Capitals has been very close, he’s frustrated one of the best offenses in the league.
At the Caps’ practice this morning, Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom were split up onto different lines. That just doesn’t happen. Ever.
It must be magic… or remarkable, natural talent.
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Murray’s 15-3-1 this season in the NHL – both in the regular season and the playoffs so far. Goaltending greats like Martin Brodeur have commended his talent and composure, saying he’s much more mature in both his play and mental strength than nearly any other 21 year old.
If you’ve forgotten, Murray stopped 47 of 49 shots earlier in this series. He waved his magic wand (okay, goalie stick) and whisked the Penguins off to a successful win.
But Murray himself had to go through a lot before he got to the point where he could do that. He was okay, but not particularly great in his junior career. Drafted by the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the OHL, he had a lackluster first three seasons. Take a look at his stats from his time there:
"2010-2011: 8-11-3 record, 3.79 GAA, .887 save percentage2011-2012: 13-19-1 record and a lost starting job, 4.08 GAA2012-2013: 26-19-4 record, 3.67 GAA, .894 save percentage; 2-4 in playoffs2013-2014: 32-11-1 record, 2.57 GAA; 4-3-1 in playoffs"
Granted, the Greyhounds were also a far worse team proportional to their league than the Penguins are. But still, that’s a pretty big jump between the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 seasons, which may have had something to do with the Pens signing him at that point. Despite that rough junior career, he’s continually improved and is still getting better.
Last year was his first full pro season, and he spent it in the AHL. In that season, he won five awards. FIVE: AHL All-Rookie Team, AHL First All-Star Team, Dudley “Red” Garrett Memorial Trophy, Harry “Hap”‘ Holmes Memorial Award (shared with Jeff Zatkoff), and the Aldege “Baz” Bastien Award.
Of course, we can’t see the future and who will win the Cup this year, but if the Penguins make it a little further down the road, I could easily see Murray receiving the Conn Smythe trophy for playoff MVP.
So there’s his own little Cinderella story. He’s gone from losing records and getting his starting job stolen to myriad awards and stealing a starting job of his own. That’s a darn good story about a darn good goalie.
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The way I see it, he’ll be the playoff starter indefinitely. Even though Fleury is healthy, he hasn’t seen game action in months, and the playoffs are not the best time to throw him back in. Murray’s on fire, and he’s more than proven himself already.
The clock hasn’t struck midnight on the Penguins’ season yet, but when it does Murray will still be there, shining as bright as ever.