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University of Massachusets Athletics
UMass Alumnus Matt Murray Makes NHL Debut With Dallas Stars
March 02, 2023 | Hockey
The St. Albert, Alberta native is the 21st Minuteman to reach the NHL.
AMHERST, Mass. – Former University of Massachusetts goaltender Matt Murray will become the 21st Minuteman to reach the National Hockey League tonight when he makes his first NHL start with the Dallas Stars in net tonight against the Chicago Blackhawks at Chicago's United Center. The St. Albert, Alberta native signed a one-year entry-level contract with Dallas for the 2022-23 season last October and joins Jonathan Quick as just the second UMass netminder to reach the NHL.
Murray became the 13th player in head coach Greg Carvel's UMass tenure to ink an NHL deal and the ninth to do so after coming to Amherst undrafted when he signed with the Stars last fall. He has seen action in 29 games this season for the Texas Stars, the Stars' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, posting a 14-9-5 record with three shutouts. In his first full professional season, Murray ranks fourth in the AHL with a 2.36 goals-against average and ranks seventh among rookies in the league with a .909 save percentage. He joined Texas at the end of the 2021-22 season on an amateur tryout, logging a 5-1-0 record, a 1.68 goals-against average and a .947 save percentage over that stint.
Murray played five seasons with the Minutemen, winning a National Championship, two Hockey East Tournament titles and a Hockey East Regular Season crown. He appeared in 121 in his collegiate career and registered a 2.23 goals against average and a .917 save percentage with 2,850 career stops. He is UMass' all-time leader in wins (73) and shutouts (14) and first set the program's single-season wins record with 20 in 2018-19 before breaking that in 2021-22 with his 21st win in the Hockey East Championship game.
In 2020-21 Murray finished 11th nationally in goals against average (1.97), eighth in winning percentage (.714, 10-4-0) and tied for eighth in shutouts (3), while holding a .917 save percentage.
He capped his 2020-21 campaign with a 36-save performance against Minnesota Duluth in the National Semifinal, sending the Minutemen to the National Championship game with the 3-2 overtime victory over the Bulldogs.
As a graduate student in 2021-22, Murray received his first Hockey East All-Star nod of his career and went 14-7-2 in league action over 24 games with a 2.19 goals against average over 1,400 minutes in net and a 920 save percentage. The 2022 Hockey East All-Tournament Team honoree ended his final campaign in Amherst with a 21-12-2 record, 2.31 GAA and a .917 save percentage with three shutouts.
Murray became the 13th player in head coach Greg Carvel's UMass tenure to ink an NHL deal and the ninth to do so after coming to Amherst undrafted when he signed with the Stars last fall. He has seen action in 29 games this season for the Texas Stars, the Stars' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, posting a 14-9-5 record with three shutouts. In his first full professional season, Murray ranks fourth in the AHL with a 2.36 goals-against average and ranks seventh among rookies in the league with a .909 save percentage. He joined Texas at the end of the 2021-22 season on an amateur tryout, logging a 5-1-0 record, a 1.68 goals-against average and a .947 save percentage over that stint.
Murray played five seasons with the Minutemen, winning a National Championship, two Hockey East Tournament titles and a Hockey East Regular Season crown. He appeared in 121 in his collegiate career and registered a 2.23 goals against average and a .917 save percentage with 2,850 career stops. He is UMass' all-time leader in wins (73) and shutouts (14) and first set the program's single-season wins record with 20 in 2018-19 before breaking that in 2021-22 with his 21st win in the Hockey East Championship game.
In 2020-21 Murray finished 11th nationally in goals against average (1.97), eighth in winning percentage (.714, 10-4-0) and tied for eighth in shutouts (3), while holding a .917 save percentage.
He capped his 2020-21 campaign with a 36-save performance against Minnesota Duluth in the National Semifinal, sending the Minutemen to the National Championship game with the 3-2 overtime victory over the Bulldogs.
As a graduate student in 2021-22, Murray received his first Hockey East All-Star nod of his career and went 14-7-2 in league action over 24 games with a 2.19 goals against average over 1,400 minutes in net and a 920 save percentage. The 2022 Hockey East All-Tournament Team honoree ended his final campaign in Amherst with a 21-12-2 record, 2.31 GAA and a .917 save percentage with three shutouts.
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