Much is unknown about the 2020 offseason, starting with when it will take place. When it does the Pittsburgh Penguins and General Manager Jim Rutherford will have plenty of tough decisions to make, the toughest of which happens to be in net. The Penguins GM spoke to The Athletic’s Josh Yohe about the goaltending situations stating, “We can’t make the decisions at this moment. But we know it won’t be easy.”As much as the front office and fans alike would prefer to bring both netminders back, the steadiness of the salary cap, due to the COVID-19 hiatus, makes that a difficult task to accomplish. If one of either Matt Murray or Tristan Jarry must be moved, Murray figures to be the one on his way out. Below are the five most likely trade partners for the Penguins if they are to attempt to move Murray.
Buffalo Sabres
The Sabres have been struggling to find a suitable starting goaltender since the departure of Ryan Miller in 2014. This past season Buffalo deployed a tandem of experienced journeyman Carter Hutton and Swedish veteran Linus Ullmark. While Ullmark has proven that he can handle tandem duties, he failed to reach the 40-game mark in any of his five seasons with the Sabres organization, and like Murray is a Restricted Free Agent. Murray would give the Sabres a bona fide starting goaltender, while allowing the organization to focus on finding forward depth. Pittsburgh and Buffalo have an extensive trade history, partly due to Sabres GM Jason Botterill’s former position as Penguins Assistant GM. I place Murray’s trade value at a young defensive prospect and a second-round pick making Buffalo a top contender.
Ottawa Senators
Craig Anderson has been a constant for the Senators between the pipes since 2011, but the 38-year-old and his $4.75 Million cap hit come off the books this offseason as he heads to Unrestricted Free Agency. His backup, Anders Nilsson, is 30 years old with another season left on his current deal. Murray’s career .914 save percentage and 2.66 Goals Against Average would be a nice upgrade from Anderson who has averaged a .901 SV% and 3.36 GAA the past three seasons. Amid a rebuild, the Sens would get their goalie while the Pens would most likely receive a one or two of the Sens seven 2ndround picks that they have racked up for the next two drafts. Not to mention Ottawa will have nearly $40 Million in cap space this summer, opening the possibility for a Jack Johnson cap dump.
Chicago Blackhawks
The Blackhawks started the season with two solid goaltending options in Corey Crawford and co-reigning Jennings Trophy Winner Robin Lehner. Since then they traded Lehner to Vegas in exchange for goaltender Malcolm Subban, who will be an RFA at the end of this season. Crawford, who has been the Blackhawks franchise goaltender since 2010, had a bounce-back season in 2019.20 following two injury-shortened campaigns from 2017 to 2019. While Murray and Chicago would be a good fit on the ice, issues could arise off the ice and at the negotiating table. The biggest question surrounding Chicago will be cap room, as they should only have roughly $7 Million in space once the offseason rolls around.
Detroit Red Wings
Not much went in the right direction for the historically terrible Detroit Red Wings this season, but this offseason should provide some positive developments. First and foremost, the embarrassing nature of their 2019.20 campaign has netted them a solid opportunity at the first overall selection during this year’s NHL Entry Draft. Potential franchise-altering winger Alexis Lafreniere is expected to sit in that role, and pairing him with a brand new franchise goalie could severely improve Detroit’s position during their rebuild. Jonathan Bernier managed to put up serviceable numbers this season, and would serve as a great backup to 1B to Murray. Not to mention the $35 Million in cap space that the Red Wings will carry into the offseason. The Red Wings hit rock bottom this year, but adding Murray and Lafreniere will be two major steps to returning the Original Six franchise to the playoffs.
Edmonton Oilers
The NHL is a comparison heavy league. While many like to compare the first five seasons of Connor McDavid’s career to Sidney Crosby, I tend to lean towards comparing him to Mario Lemieux, in that McDavid has not been surrounded by enough talent early in his career to help him take the Oilers deep into the playoffs. After missing the playoffs in his first four seasons the Penguins made a trade that helped the team finally clinch a playoff spot and eventually brought a championship to Pittsburgh. Then General Manager Tony Esposito traded Doug Bodger and Darrin Shannon to Buffalo in exchange for goaltender Tom Barrasso. A similar move might be in the making right now with Pittsburgh being on the opposite end. Murray brings a solid tandem partner for Mikko Koskinen who had a good season this year and could be one of the big pieces that Edmonton has been missing that would make them a perennial contender.
While there is no guarantee that Matt Murray will be traded this offseason, it seems as if the writing may be on the walls for the two-time Stanley Cup Champion. Even though his resume includes more NHL experience and postseason success than his emerging replacement Tristan Jarry, the salary cap squeeze, matched with the upcoming expansion draft next season, make Murray the more likely to depart. If that ends up being the case don’t be surprised if Murray ends up in one of the five organizations above.
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