Sorry, Marc-Andre: Murray is for real

By: Joe Smeltzer
September 23rd, 2001. Foxboro, Massachusetts. 5 minutes are left to play in what has been a pretty dull defensive battle between AFC East Rivals, the New York Jets and the New England Patriots. Under center for New England is a man who is expected to be in the northeast for the next decade: #11, Drew Bledsoe. Drew had it all. He was tall, good-looking, and had a rocket for an arm. He had already led the Pats to a Superbowl appearance three years prior and looked to be a Patriot for life when Robert Kraft inked him to a 10-year contract worth $103,000,000 in March of 2001. But, fate has a funny way of inserting itself into whatever situation it wants to.

With New England down by 7 and with the ball, Bledsoe needed to make something happen. So the ball was snapped, and Bledsoe looked downfield for a receiver to throw too. When nobody was open, Bledsoe did what all quarterbacks should do and ran to the sideline to gain a few yards and get out of bounds. He accomplished his objective, but not before receiving this hit from New York's All-Pro linebacker, #57 Mo Lewis

The hit sheared a blood vessel in Bledsoe's chest, nearly killing him and putting him out of action indefinitely. Replacing him at quarterback was a scrawny kid from San Mateo, California, who, despite having a solid career at the University of Michigan, was taken in just the 6th round of the 2000 NFL Draft. The result for Bledsoe was five more years in the league and 0 Superbowl or Pro-Bowl appearances. The result for the New England Patriots was 4 Superbowls, 6 AFC Championships, 13 AFC East Titles, and the birth of the greatest quarterback the league has ever seen.

Ok, so maybe the Pittsburgh Penguins goaltending situation won't turn into the hockey equivalent of the Bledsoe-Brady saga. However, Saturday's 2-1 victory over the Washington Capitals has officially convinced me that, unless things take a drastic turn for the worst, one of the league's best goaltenders shall be a spectator for the remainder of the postseason. 

To give a little background, on April Fools day of the year of our Lord, 2016, Penguins netminder Marc Andre-Fleury was sidelined indefinitely with a concussion. That put the faith of the city (or at least it's sports fans) in the hands of a 21-year-old who, just four months prior, was robbing snipers for the Hershey Bears, Grand Rapids Griffins and Utica Comments in the American Hockey League. The 21-year-old's name is Matthew Murray, and he is good. He is real good.

Not too long ago, Matt Murray wore the colors of the baby Penguins. Now, the big Penguins are depending on him. Photo creds to wbspenguins.com

So good so soon, that the #1 goaltender job is his to lose. After a Game 2 victory over Washington in what has been Murray's greatest performance to date, the kid has a playoff record of 4-1, with a Goals Against Average of 1.74 and a Save Percentage of .939, good for 3rd among current playoff goaltenders in both categories. Also on his playoff resume is a shutout in Madison Square Garden, and all four of his wins have come against two of the top goaltenders in the world. Yes, Murray is impressive, but what about Fleury?

Remember the pre-Mike Sullivan 2015-16 Pittsburgh Penguins? Well, they weren't very good. In fact, they were so underwhelming that many figured they would not make the playoffs at all, and that very well might have happened, if not for the man known as "Flower." With the Penguins offensive guns firing blankety-blanks, Fleury needed to be on his A++ game virtually every night he was in the cage. Fleury almost singlehandedly kept the Titanic from sinking, and in my opinion, he was the Penguins most valuable player of the regular season. However, this is not the regular season. 

This is the playoffs, and in the playoffs, it's all about who has the hot hand, especially when it comes to goaltenders. There are countless examples, such as Ken Dryden with Montreal in 1971, and, to a lesser extent, Johan Hedberg with the Pens in 2001, of young and unproven goaltenders catching fire at the most critical time. Murray looks like he is headed into that territory, and I do not think Mike Sullivan should tamper with the Penguins rhythm regardless of the who his options are. Going back to my opening statement, here is some more New England football history. In the 2001 AFC Title game, fittingly against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Tom Brady was the one who was knocked out of the bout. Drew Bledsoe took Brady's place in a role reversal and led the Pats to victory. When SuperBowl time rolled around, Bill Belichick decided that Brady was still too hot to sit and went with the hot hand, and the rest is history

I think that the Pittsburgh Penguins have a reasonable chance to raise Lord Stanley's Cup high no matter who is in goal, but Murray is the hot hand, and the hot hand must be fed. So, I would advise Mike Sullivan to take a lesson from his hometown Patriots and ride the wave until Murray hits an undertow.