Matt Murray to start Game 4 for the Penguins

Facing a 3-1 deficit with a loss on Friday night, the Pittsburgh Penguins are turning back to Matt Murray in goal.

Before the puck even dropped for their first playoff game, the Pittsburgh Penguins lost their primary goaltender. Matt Murray went down with a lower body injury before Game 1 of the first round against Columbus, but Pittsburgh still found themselves on solid ground with Marc-Andre’ Fleury stepping in.

Fleury allowed two goals or fewer in six of Pittsburgh’s first nine playoff games, with the expected 7-2 record. But he then allowed nine goals over Game 5 and Game 6 against the Washington Capitals, and even with two shutouts over the next three games Murray’s return to health invited a question between the pipes tor the Penguins.

Early in Wednesday night’s 5-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators, Fleury allowed four goals in nine shots over 13 minutes. Murray came in, turned away 19 of 20 shots over the rest of the game, but that early four-goal deficit was too much to overcome.

Head coach Mike Sullivan has tried to remain mum on who will start Friday night’s Game 4, but Friday morning’s team skate unveiled who will be in goal.

It’s easy to forget that Murray stepped in capably during Pittsburgh’s run to the Stanley Cup a year ago, with a 2.08 goals-against average and .923 save percentage over 21 postseason starts (15 wins).

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A 3-1 series deficit would be tough for the Penguins to overcome, even as a more talented team than the Senators. But as it always does in the Stanley Cup playoffs, it’s coming down to a gap in play between opposing goaltenders. With Fleury appearing to hit a bit of a wall, at least from a consistency standpoint, a move back to Murray had to be made.