June 21, 2003 The Pittsburgh Penguins have chosen goalkeeper Marc-Andre Fleury with the best overall pick in the NHL project in 2003 in Nashville. Over the next 14 years, Fleury became one of the cornerstones of the Penguins franchise, which included Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Together, the trio won three Stanley Cups, and Fleury became the leader of the franchise throughout the time in almost every major statistical category for the goalkeeper.
Accelerate for nine years until June 23, 2012. Entry to the NHL is held in Pittsburgh, where the Penguins chose another young goalkeeper, this time in the third round. His name was Matt Murray, and he quickly grew into an unthinkable prospect.
This is a decision that Rutherford never wanted to do, but nevertheless he had to do it. Fleury was a big part of the franchise for more than a decade and a fan of fans, but when the cards were on the table, the choice was clear: Matt Murray was the future of the Penguins between the pipes.
Rutherford's decision was met with mixed emotions from the penguin fans, and everyone had an opinion on the situation. Fleury was much more than the goalkeeper of many fans, and he clearly meant a lot to the community and his teammates.
Unfortunately, hockey is business, and Rutherford made a business decision based on what he considered the best for the team in the future. When you take into account all the factors, it's easy to understand why Rutherford decided to keep Murray, thereby exposing Fleury expansion, where he was eventually chosen by the Golden Knights.
Perhaps the most obvious reason why penguins were stuck with Murray was the age difference between him and his predecessor Fleury. When the 2018-2019 season begins, Murray will only be 24-year-old, while Fleury will be less than two months away from turning 34. The difference between the two really shifts the bar in favor of Murray when comparing the two.
At this stage of your career, you pretty much know what you get from Mark-André Fleury. He has been in the league for 14 years and has experienced heavy ups and downs, but overall he is more than the average goalkeeper of the league in most nights. He really proved that this year, but we'll get to that a little.
On the other hand, Murray still has some developments. Of course, he is already a two-time winner of the Stanley Cup, but he still has plenty of room for his growth. Ask someone what part of his game needs the most work, and they will probably give you the same answers: a shaky hand of gloves, trauma, addiction, etc.
Only 23, Murray is not where he is close to his main game years, as a goalkeeper. If he continues to develop and reach a level that he believes he can, he is the number one penguin for the next decade plus.
If Rutherford's decision to leave Murray over Fleury was unpopular at the time, their respective performances during this season did not help him. Fleury published career bests on both interest saving and against the goal, while Murray in turn published the worst results in both categories.
Most goalkeepers do not publish the best seasons at the age of 33, and it's hard to tell what his numbers would look like if he played time, but it was a great year for Fleury, no doubt. It is also difficult to say whether his strong game will be postponed to the next season or he will retreat a little.
Murray fought the injury throughout the season and was engaged in a serious family affair, which certainly influenced his game. There is no reason to believe that he will not bounce back and become a real elite goalkeeper for the upcoming penguins.
It's hard to argue with the pedigree of any of these two goalkeepers. Both are multiple winners of the Stanley Cup, who have the opportunity to participate in games on any night. Both Fleury and Murray are shocked by what they are doing and we were blessed that they are both in the shape of penguins while we were doing it.
There should be no doubt about the possibility of any of these two goalkeepers. Both are much above average in their work, and although we can argue about Murray's fight last season, Fleury survived the same struggle for a longer period of time, including when it mattered to the majority.
We discussed the relevant Murray and Fleury genealogy above, but it is important to separate the regular season and the postseason. Murray was online for two games in the Stanley Cup, including a shutout in game 6 against predators in 2017. Fleury was online for one, in game 7 against Red Wings in 2009.
Both have one Stanley Cup, which you could call yours. Fleury supported the team until the end of 2009, while Murray performed this work in 2016. Handles do not raise the Cup in 2017 without them. These are just facts.
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