It’s Official: Penguins Activate Matt Murray from IR

It’s official–the Pittsburgh Penguins activated goaltender Matt Murray from injured reserve, Wednesday morning. Through a tweet from the Penguins PR, the Penguins made the announcement ahead of Wednesday’s game in Chicago.

Goaltender Tristan Jarry, who started two games in Murray’s absence, was reassigned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

Murray missed nine games dealing with an unspecified lower body injury which he said continued to worsen and left him sore after games. Murray admitted yesterday the injury did not affect his play, but he and the team decided rest was the best course of action. Murray is now in a competition for the Penguins net with Casey DeSmith, who has started seven games in Murray’s stead.

Murray was placed on IR on Thanksgiving. The Penguins have seven games in the next 10 days including tonight and a pair of back-to-back games before the NHL holiday break on Dec. 22. NHL teams get a five-day holiday break from the 22nd to the 27th.

Murray, 24, has struggled this season. In 11 appearances, he has a .877 save percentage and a 4.08 goals against average. His record is 4-5-1. Since winning the Stanley Cup in 2017, Murray has ranked near the bottom of the league in save percentage among starting goaltenders. Murray has also missed time with injuries twice this season.

Conversely, DeSmith, 27, has excelled in his first full NHL season. DeSmith has raced to a .925 save percentage and 2.32 goals against average. DeSmith is 9-4-4 this season.

Murray was a full participant in the Penguins practice, yesterday which signaled he was ready to rejoin the lineup. The Penguins play the Chicago Blackhawks, Wednesday night at 8 p.m. The Penguins have not yet announced a starting goaltender for the game. Pittsburgh Hockey Now will update the story if more details become available. Also look for the PHN Game Day preview.