Toronto Maple Leafs’ Matt Murray’s net-knocking antics could get him in trouble

Oh boy. Matt Murray didn’t double down on knocking the net off. He tripled down. A rarely seen move that’s got him in hot water with hockey fans throughout the state of Minnesota.

During Friday night’s matchup between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Minnesota Wild, Murray dislodged the net on three separate occasions. And to think, just two nights before when the Leafs faced off against the Devils in Newark, New Jersey, Murray was enemy No.1 for the same reason.

I wrote a piece on why I think Murray is innocent of any wrongdoing. And I still believe that to be the case. Murray isn’t knocking the net off intentionally. But it’s happening with such a frequency that he’s put himself in a really tight spot.

There’s no way around it: Murray is on blast. Surely the NHL is paying attention, and I don’t think he will receive much leniency the next time he knocks the net off.

I’ve been there before. It’s a sinking feeling when you’re out there trying to do your job as a goaltender and the pegs fail. But at this point, I think Murray has to be more conscious of the post situation in every arena.

Against Minnesota, I don’t think Murray can be faulted for the first and third occurrences, but the second is tough to watch. Let me explain.

This clip is the first time Murray knocked the net off. And to me, it’s clear that Murray is trying to use the post to push off towards Wild forward Calen Addison. But the force of the impact causes the flexible marsh peg to release. Simple. It’s a prime scoring chance against, and if the puck goes in, regardless of the net being off, the goal will count. So it serves Murray no benefit to knock the cage off in this instance.

This is the tough one. Especially Toronto has been hemmed in their defensive zone and the whistle no doubt aided the Maple Leafs. But I don’t see anything about Murray’s mechanics that are out of the ordinary.

The problem, I believe, is that when the Leafs goaltender uses shin-on-post RVH, his shoulder and arm hit the post with as much force as his leg. And that puts pressure on the post several feet off the ice.

It’s different for goalies that engage the post with the skate blade or the pad’s toe box in RVH. The pressure point is lower to the ice. Think four inches instead of 30 inches, like when Murray leans in with his upper body.

My high school level physics knowledge tells me that Murray’s higher pressure point on the post creates a greater lateral force on the plastic peg than it would if his skate was on the post. And that, in turn, makes the net easier to dislodge.

It’s worth noting that Wild goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury didn’t have any problems with the net on Friday night. And I think that can be attributed to his preference of using skate-on-post RVH. His main point of forceful post engagement is lower than Murray’s.

There’s more to it. Watching the video, it’s apparent that the holes were drilled to an acceptable depth at the Xcel Energy Center. But the top of the hole is quite chamfered. That factor allows the peg to flex more than it was designed to. The width of the hole should be consistent from the concrete to the top of the ice.

So even with the turkey basters out, and the net put back in place properly, the way the ice was drilled allows some wiggle room for the peg. 

Now here’s the rub: many NHL rinks are like this. It’s hard to drill straight down without creating some outward taper toward the top of the hole. And I think it’s something Murray – and all NHL goalies – need to consider when a period begins. Survey the post. Push on the net. Find out what the force limit is.

It’s like course knowledge in golf. A PGA Tour professional doesn’t just tee up a ball and go play. They scout the course in advance. NHL goalies need to do the same with the arena. The boards and glass can be different. Ice conditions vary. It pays to know, as a goalie, what you’re working with.

This was the third time the net came off, and there’s no faulting Murray on this one. He’s crashing into the far post to make a save. There’s a pressing need to get across as quickly as possible and seal the short side. Murray impacts the net hard enough to lift the entire cage upward, causing the back peg to eject.

NHL nets become dislodged in this manner fairly often. It might not be every game, but a quick search can find an example from just about every NHL netminder.

So in the future, what can be done?

First off, the NHL has to figure out how to keep the pegs from ejecting. That would go a long way towards keeping the nets in place. It’s going to take desire and dollars. Research and design. But a better solution has to exist. It just needs to be found.

But for Murray, he’s going to have to alter his post integrations. He’s now under the microscope and won’t be receiving the benefit of the doubt. Murray has angered a lot of people. And you know the NHL is paying attention after Wild head coach Dean Evason laid into Murray’s actions during his post game availability.

Dean Evason on Matt Murray knocking the net off the moorings 3 times tonight (1 ruined a scoring chance, 1 was with Ek line buzzing for 66 seconds. Referee Justin St. Pierre was the in-zone ref all 3 times) https://t.co/hq8PQYEWcy pic.twitter.com/9FlZNZQeGa

— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) November 25, 2022

Even if Murray is innocent, he cannot continue to knock the net off. The situation has reached a fever pitch, and the chorus is deafening. Murray has to be more careful and take into consideration the ice, peg, and post conditions.

And he can’t be out there playing whack-a-mole with the peg while the ice crew and on-ice officials are trying to clean up his mess.

I can give Murray a pass on the first and third instances. But the second just can’t happen. It’s a bad look for him as well as the NHL. And in the future, right or wrong, Murray can count on being penalized if he can’t find a workaround to his current techniques.