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Toronto Maple Leafs: The Pros and Cons of the Matt Murray Trade

By Jeremiah Lee

Mar 5, 2022; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Arizona Coyotes right wing Clayton Keller (9) scores a goal against Ottawa Senators goaltender Matt Murray (30) during the third period at Gila River Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 5, 2022; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Arizona Coyotes right wing Clayton Keller (9) scores a goal against Ottawa Senators goaltender Matt Murray (30) during the third period at Gila River Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 2, 2020; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Matt Murray (30) in goal against the Washington Capitals during the first period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

Toronto Maple Leafs Matt Murray Pros

Given that the  Leafs are a much better team than those that Murray was a part of, I am not too worried about his performance for the team as long as he stops all the shots he’s supposed to, no soft or leaky goals.

However, his performance in the playoffs are a whole new story: Murray has a 2.18 GAA and a 0.921 save percentage. (Stats hockey-reference.com).

Once again, if he stops all the shots he’s supposed to and not allow any soft or leaky goals, then the  Leafs should be fine. Again, Murray was a huge part of the Penguins winning their back-to-back cups, alongside Marc-Andre Fleury. However, each team needs their backup to come up huge if their starter his a snag, and the Penguins possessed a strong 1A/1B  tandem.

The Leafs also had a decent choice of goaltenders from free agency which includes Jack Campbell. While I personally would have rather kept Campbell, his requested term is too long for comfort, and Darcy Kuemper is too expensive. John Gibson, another offseason suggestion, has less past success and a much worse fall of, not to mention a worse contract. So, I guess given the options , Murray isn’t the worst that they could do.

In the end, the Leafs are building for the playoffs and Matt Murray has a proven record, being a two-time Stanley Cup champion. A goaltender needs poise to perform at the highest level and Murray has that, hands down. His regular season play and his last trip to the playoffs were not impressive to say the least.

Another thing to mention is that the  goaltending coach is Jon Elkin, who has a long history with Murray. I hope that that longtime relationship will help bring Murray back to his glory days with the Penguins.

So, what are the pros?

  1. Poise
  2. Winning pedigree
  3. Solid if not injured
  4. Longtime student of goaltending coach Jon Elkin

Honorable mention: Really can’t do any worse with question mark goaltenders on the market.

Now, what are the cons?

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