Matt Murray shines in Penguins' overtime win against Red Wings
DETROIT — Over the past two months, Mike Sullivan repeatedly has stopped short of saying if he has an unquestioned No. 1 goaltender.
He just happens to have one who starts most of the time and recently was named to the NHL’s All-Star Game event.
The other is Matt Murray.
Murray made 28 saves for the Pittsburgh Penguins in a 2-1 overtime win against the Detroit Red Wings Friday at Little Caesars Arena. It was his fourth consecutive win.
Since late November, Murray virtually has been the backup to Tristan Jarry. Sullivan has suggested that role, even if undeclared by coaches or management, has allowed Murray to fine-tune his game by spending extra time with goaltending coach Mike Buckley.
“It appears to me like he’s just seeing it,” Sullivan said. “When Matt’s at his best, he makes difficult saves look routine. I think it’s because of his ability to read plays. He squares up to the puck. His depth in the crease is really good. Pucks tend to hit him or they miss the net because of his depth in the crease, whether he’s at the top of the paint or he’s in the middle of the paint or whether he’s going to play deeper if there’s a backdoor option or whatever it may be.
“He’s making good reads. He’s tracking the puck well. He’s finding the puck through the traffic. And he’s swallowing pucks so that next-play opportunity isn’t there for our opponents.”
In his past six games, Murray has a 5-1-0 record along with a 2.82 goals-against average and a .904 save percentage.
Those numbers aren’t exactly All-Star caliber or even worthy of being named the NHL’s third star of the week, but they represent a considerable improvement from his six games before this stretch in which he went 0-2-3 with a 3.99 goals-against average and an .852 save percentage.
“The last couple games, I’ve felt like I’m getting a little bit better and better each time,” Murray said. “I felt pretty good again out there today. So I just try to keep building today.”
Following a languid first period for both teams, the Red Wings opened the scoring at 3 minutes, 29 seconds of the second period with a power-play goal.
Taking a cross-ice pass from Red Wings forward Frans Nielsen, Red Wings forward Filip Zadina settled a puck in the top of the left circle and hurried a wrister as Penguins defenseman Jack Johnson approached with a stick-check attempt. Red Wings forward Givani Smith was positioned above the crease as a screen, allowing the puck to go between his legs and through Murray’s five hole for his sixth goal of the season.
The Penguins tied the score 3:36 into the third period with a power-play goal of their own. Spinning off a check from Red Wings forward Luke Glendening and controlling a puck at the left point, Penguins forward Sidney Crosby fed a pass to center point for Kris Letang, who one-touched it to forward Evgeni Malkin on the left half wall.
Malkin immediately fed a cross-ice pass to forward Bryan Rust in the right circle. From there, Rust, a native of Pontiac, Mich., lifted a wrister which clinked off the near post and into the net past goaltender Jimmy Howard’s glove. It was Rust’s 20th goal of the season, the first time in his six-year career he has reached that plateau.
At 1:33 of overtime, the Penguins claimed the win. Working on a four-on-three power-play opportunity, Malkin controlled the puck on the right half wall and chopped a shot-pass to the Crosby, positioned above the crease. Crosby tapped the puck past Howard’s right skate for his eighth goal.
The Penguins improved their record to 10-5 in games decided in overtime, and Murray improved his overall record to 14-6-4.
Starter or otherwise, his play is trending in a positive direction.
“He’s been the ultimate professional,” Rust said. “I’m not sure he’s too happy about (not playing as much), but he comes to work every day, doesn’t scowl, doesn’t sulk. He comes in, works hard, has fun, does his job and just waits for his time. That’s what he’s been doing, and he’s been playing great for us lately.”
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
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