Matt Murray is a train that keeps on rolling.
The Pittsburgh Penguins netminder collected his fifth win of the postseason Wednesday night, helping his club take a commanding two-games-to-none lead over the Nashville Predators as the series shifts back to Tennessee.
With the victory, Murray reached 20 playoff wins in the third-fewest games of any goalie in NHL history. He completed the feat in 28 games between this spring and last, while Bill Durnan did so in 26 games across four playoff runs from 1944-47, and Patrick Roy got there in 27 games spread across three postseasons.
Only two goaltenders in NHL history have reached 20 career playoff wins in fewer games played than @mattmurray_30. #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/4MAPnxmgQh
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) June 1, 2017
Despite being in his second NHL season, Murray is still considered a rookie by NHL standards. That rare circumstance has allowed him to set the NHL record for wins by a rookie goaltender. His 20 wins are five more than Steve Penney, Patrick Roy, Ron Hextall, and Cam Ward, who all sit tied for second.
Murray now leads the playoffs with a 1.54 goals-against average and a .943 save percentage in seven games.
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