With Anthony Stolarz out, Matt Murray will play in an NHL game for the first time since Apr. 2, 2023 After a long recovery, Matt Murray is finally back in the NHL with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Murray will start in net for the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday night against the Buffalo Sabres. Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube confirmed the news shortly after the team's morning skate in Buffalo. "He's played well [with the Marlies]. and we thought we'd bring him up here and get him involved here tonight with the (Anthony) Stolarz injury," Berube said. "A veteran guy that's been around. Obviously, the last couple of years with injuries and things like that with him. He's back to health and he's playing well down there, and like I said, veteran guy." It'll be the 30-year-old's first NHL start since Apr. 2, 2023, against the Detroit Red Wings, where he left near the end of the third period with an injury. He was called up on Friday morning after posting a 27-save shutout with the Toronto Marlies on Wednesday against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Dennis Hildeby was sent to the Marlies to make room for the veteran goaltender. Murray has four wins and a .931 save percentage through eight games with the Marlies this season. He admitted before the season [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7bZzOD7gNo] that he hasn't "felt this good physically" in quite a long time. The netminder played three games last season with the Marlies after recovering from bilateral hip surgery in Sept. 2023. Murray had one win and an .846 save percentage in that span. "I just feel like I still have a lot to give. I also wanted to do right by Dr. ( Kelly, who did great work and has helped me feel a lot better," Murray said during Maple Leafs training camp. "And all the guys who put in time and effort with me and my rehab process, I felt like I could make something out of it. I feel like I owe a lot to those guys. I've mentioned them by name a bunch of times and they know how important they've been to my recovery process. I just wanted to do right by those guys." It'll be Murray's first NHL game in 628 days. The goaltender, who won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 and 2017, has been on a long journey with injury recovery. Over his nine-year career, he's played 272 NHL games, with a record of 146-86-24 and a .910 save percentage. The netminder has also played 51 playoff games and has a .921 save percentage throughout that span. Since returning from bilateral hip surgery, Murray has played 11 AHL games. He signed a one-year, $875,000 contract with the Maple Leafs in the summer. His next step is to remain healthy for a long time. If he can do that, his future in the NHL could be as bright as ever. "Obviously, he's won two cups and he's done it all. But, he still has a lot left in the tank and he wants to continue playing," Berube said. "It takes a lot of hard work and he's already accomplished the ultimate goal a couple of times. But he still has a lot of fire inside and wants to get back to the form he had once."
