To the surprise of absolutely no one, Matt Murray will be in net tonight when the Penguins host the Devils at PPG Paints Arena. The question is: How many of the 32 regular-season games after that will he start?
Obviously, Casey DeSmith will get his share, including, presumably, one of this weekend's games in a back-to-back set against the Senators and Maple Leafs.
But can there really be any more talk of a "1 and 1a" or a "partnership" in goal as the organization suggested when DeSmith was carrying the Penguins in November? With the way Murray has played since returning from a lower body injury in mid-December, there's no debate that the Penguins' franchise goalie is just that: A franchise goalie.
"He's confident right now," Bryan Rust was saying of Murray. "Doesn't really get too high or too low throughout the year. Whether he's paying well or not up to his standard, he tries to keep his routine the same. But you can tell in his body language that he's got confidence right now."
And why not?
In his last 11 starts, Murray is 10-1 with a 1.81 goals against average and .944 save percentage. Those kind of numbers don't typically earn a 50/50 split or even a 60/40.
Murray, who is 5-1-1 in his career against the Devils, has never started more than 49 games in a season and would be hard-pressed to do that this season after missing 16 games due to a concussion, then a lower body injury.
On Monday, Mike Sullivan said that despite Murray's numbers of late, it doesn't change the way he's approaching the division of labor.
"Obviously, Matt's put a real solid stretch together for us," the coach was saying. "We're hoping that he'll continue that. We think he will. We think that's the game that Matt brings to our team. That's what he's done since he's been a Penguin and he's been a big part of this team's success. But we believe we have two quality guys."
Unfortunately for the Penguins, one of those guys -- DeSmith -- is slumping. Whether related or not, DeSmith has gone 0-3 while allowing 14 goals on 88 shots since signing his three-year contract extension. Two of those losses came against the last-place Blackhawks and the last-place Kings.
That's not to suggest the Penguins have lost any faith in DeSmith, who has made 24 starts this season after making 11 as a rookie last season to win the backup job. The Penguins have a busy February coming up in which they'll play 13 games in 28 days and DeSmith will play a big part of that.
"Depending on how the schedule plays out, there's going to be times where we're going to need two," Sullivan said. "When you look at the logistics of the schedule from start to finish over the course of the season, it's almost essential to have two quality goalies."
THE COMBINATIONS
• The Penguins’ expected lines/pairings tonight:
Guentzel-Crosby-Simon
Rust-Malkin-Kessel
Pearson-Brassard-Hornqvist
Sheahan-Cullen-Wilson
Dumoulin-Letang
Maatta-Riikola
Pettersson-Johnson
• And for the Devils:
Johnansson-Hischier-Palmieri
Wood-Zajac-Coleman
Seney-Zacha-Bratt
Boyle-Rooney-Stafford
Greene-Severson
Butcher-Vatanen
Mueller-Santini
THE INJURIES
• Justin Schultz, defenseman, is still week to week after suffering a fractured leg on Oct. 13. He skated prior to the start of Monday's skate.
• Zach Aston-Reese, right winger, is still out with a broken left hand, though he also skated Monday.
THE SESSION
• Before Rust went on his epic tear, scoring eight goals in a six-game stretch from Dec. 12-20, Dominik Simon had been skating on the top line with Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel. But when Simon went out with a lower body, Rust made the most of it. For a while, anyway.
With Rust having cooled off, Sullivan reunited Simon with Crosby during Monday's morning skate. Meanwhile Rust was moved down to the second line with Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel, where the right-handed shot will play the left wing.
"I might make small adjustments here or there, but things don't change too much," said Rust, who has gone six games without a goal.
Like Rust, Simon is versatile enough to play either wing on pretty much any line. Before the break, Sullivan was praising Simon's playmaking ability and on-ice vision. Those traits have always seemed to works best when working with Crosby in the past. Of Simon's 20 points this season, five have come with Crosby picking up a point.
"I don't mind the pressure," Simon was saying. "You have a responsibility to score goals and stuff, but he's an unbelievable player. He makes the game easy. I really like playing with him."
• The Penguins are 7-5-1 vs. fellow Metropolitan Division teams this season but are 0-2 against the Devils while being outscored 9-3. In fact, the Penguins are 1-6-1 vs. last place teams.
"There's such a fine line between winning and losing, I think every team in this league is good," Sullivan said. "They all have good players. I think the standings can be deceiving. It's been my experience that if you don't bring your best game, you run the risk of getting beat."
• Though he didn't participate in the All-Star Skills Competition on Friday due to an illness, Crosby says he watched the event on TV from his hotel room in San Jose. He was far from surprised at U.S. Olympian Kendall Coyne Schofield's showing in the fastest skater competition after he had seen her play before. Coyne Schofield was a teammate of Crosby's sister, Taylor, at Northeastern.
"It was great to see her flying around out there," said Crosby, who added that he doesn't know yet what he's going to do with that Honda SUV he earned for winning All-Star Game MVP on Saturday.
• All players were present and accounted for during Monday's 25-minute skate.
• Jamie Oleksiak and Chad Ruhwedel will be healthy scratches.
THE OTHER SIDE
• The last time the Penguins faced the Devils on Nov. 13 in Newark, Taylor Hall had a four-point night (two goals, two assists). However, the reigning Hart Trophy winner has been out since Dec. 27 with a lower body injury and won't play tonight. Hall is progressing and could return soon. He had 37 points in 33 games prior to the injury.
• Murray will be opposed by Keith Kinkaid, who is 2-0-0 against the Penguins with a 1.50 GAA, allowing three goals on 67 shots this season. Cameron Johnson will serve as the Devils' backup while Corey Schneider is in Binghamton on a conditioning assignment.
• Miles Wood will return to the lineup after missing the past three games with a lower body injury.
• Forward Kurtis Gabriel and defenseman Egor Yakovlev will be healthy scratches.
THE SCHEDULE
Face-off is scheduled for 7:08 p.m. at PPG Paints Arena. The Penguins will practice Tuesday at noon in preparation for their showdown Wednesday night against the NHL-leading Lightning.
THE COVERAGE
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