Nobody would have seen this coming in the 2015 off-season. This time a year ago, Matt Murray was coming off of an extremely impressive rookie professional season: a .941 save percentage through 40 games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the AHL. Definitely impressive, and that was reflected by his being named the AHL's rookie of the year.
Fast forward a year, and he's a Stanley Cup champion. Not just that - he was the starting goalie of the Stanley Cup-winning team. He has more playoff wins than regular season wins.
So yeah, he's more than earned this.
— Matthew Murray (@mattmurray_30) July 19, 2016
Matt, Stanley, & The Sleeping Giant (Thunder Bay, ON) #stanleycup @penguins @NHL @HockeyHallFame pic.twitter.com/xswTOJQ2IV
— Philip Pritchard (@keeperofthecup) July 19, 2016
Murray is from Thunder Bay, so he's brought the Cup back with him - and has been spreading the Pittsburgh Penguins and Stanley Cup love around his hometown.
Matt Murray raises @Penguins flag at the Northwest Ontario Sports Hall of Fame. pic.twitter.com/uvBsDh79sa
— PuckShots (@Puck_Shots) July 18, 2016
Matt Murray makes his first stop at a ball hockey game (Thunder Bay, ON) #stanleycup @penguins @NHL @HockeyHallFame pic.twitter.com/iL223luVDD
— Philip Pritchard (@keeperofthecup) July 19, 2016
Oh, yeah - that's awesome. It's a beautiful day to be in Thunder Bay.