Matt Murrayhe was in the home net during the Maple LeafsMorning skate Saturday. Preparing to play his former SenatorsToronto’s summer trade brought him to Toronto.
Then suddenly, he vanished.
Murray approached the bench and spoke to one the Leafs trainers. Murray looked uncomfortable and then said that he was going to inform Curtis Sanford about his departure. The ice was empty and there was only one goalie. Ilya Samsonov.
After the skate was wrapped, he quickly left and forgoed the extra work of backup.
Sheldon Keefe is the Leafs’ coach. He said Murray was experiencing groin discomfort after he skated. “He was 100 percent fine going into it,” Keefe said.
Keefe indicated that a further evaluation would be done to determine whether Murray could start as planned against Ottawa.
“It’s still too early at this point to really give you much in terms of the what-if types scenarios or anything like that,” Keefe said. “We’re just gonna focus on getting Matt assessed and take it from there.”
It’s hard to imagine Murray starting on Saturday or even Monday against the Coyotes. Groin injuries shouldn’t be underestimated. There would be no reason for the Leafs to take that risk with the 28-year-old they’re betting so much on this season.
It is a feeling akin to deja vu.
