Matt Murray Fast Facts
Number: 30 Position: Goalie
DOB: 5/25/94 Hometown: Thunder Bay, Ontario Height: 6-5 Weight: 220
How Acquired By Kraken: 2025 Free Agent
NHL Seasons as of 2025: 9
Previous NHL Teams: Pittsburgh, 2016-19; Ottawa, 2020-22; Toronto, ’22-’23, ’24-’25
Career Bests: Wins-32 (2016-17), GAA-2.00 (2015-16), Save %-.930 (2015-16)
Notable: Won Stanley Cup with Penguins in 2016 & 2017, his first two NHL seasons
Far from breeding contempt, Matt Murray’s familiarity with coaches and front office in Seattle bred respect. The free agent goalie signed a one-year, $1 million contract with the Kraken this summer. On the J.D. Bunkis podcast, the 6-foot-5, 31 year old netminder explained why.
“I worked with Jason Botterill in Pittsburgh, we won a couple of Cups together.” Botterill was assistant GM at the time. “I know Lane (Lambert) from last year with the Leafs.” Murray made 28 appearances over the past two seasons with Toronto, while Lambert was a Leafs assistant in 2024-25.
“Their new goalie coach Colin (Zulianello), too. I’ve known ‘Zuly’ for a long time. We skated together since I was quite young. We play golf together a few times every summer.” Both Murray and Zulianello are from Thunder Bay, Ontario. “The familiarity definitely helps. You want to work with good people, and people that you know. That was the biggest thing that drew me to Seattle.”
Injuries have taken a major bite out of Murray’s career. After those back-to-back Stanley Cups with Pittsburgh in 2016 and 2017, Murray went from charmed to cursed – four concussions, an unspecified lower body injury, and an adductor injury, and in 2023 underwent hip surgery.
Since 2020, he’s only played 75 NHL games, split between the Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs. His combined goals-against average with the Sens and Leafs was north of three. However, in 21 games with the Leafs’ AHL farm team last year, Murray posted a sterling 1.72 GAA and .934 save percentage.
“Matt has dealt with injuries,” Seattle general manager Botterill said in an understatement. “We feel he’s healthy. We feel he’s hungry to compete for a position.”