Ottawa Senators: Grading Pierre Dorion’s 2020 Off-Season Moves

Matt Murray acquired from Pittsburgh for Jonathan Gruden and a 2020 2nd Round Pick (CBJ)

Why it made sense at the time: With the Sens moving on from Craig Anderson and Anders Nilsson out indefinitely, Ottawa was in the market for a starter for the first time in a decade. Marcus Hogberg had played well enough in 2019-20 to earn the backup job, but the team needed a number one man. With Murray losing his starting job in Pittsburgh to Tristan Jarry, the 2017 conference finalists were perfect trade partners. Ottawa had a glut of picks and prospects, so while Gruden and a 2nd weren’t nothing, losing them certainly didn’t make a huge dent in the team’s long-term outlook. While Murray was coming off a bad to very bad year, he was just one season removed from putting up a .919 save percentage, so he was far from a one-hit-wonder from his playoff runs.

How it looks so far: Murray has looked more like the 2019-20 version of himself so far in Ottawa, putting up a .888 save percentage in 19 games so far. While he has played behind a poor defence, with an expected 46.11 goals against on the season, that can’t explain all his struggles, as he’s still allowed 13.83 goals above expected. Among goalies with at least 50 minutes played this season, only Detroit’s Thomas Greiss is worse. This wouldn’t be so bad if the Sens hadn’t given Murray a 4-year contract with a $6.25 million cap hit after acquiring him from Pittsburgh. The deal makes Murray the 7th highest paid netminder in the league, ahead of 2020 Vezina winner Connor Hellebuyck and Jacob Markstrom, the top goalie on the market in the off-season. I had said I wanted to avoid contract extensions and RFA signings, but for Murray, the trade and the contract are impossible to separate.

Grade: C, the trade itself is probably a full letter-grade higher, but the contract brings this way down.