Montreal’s well-thewed Swedish defenceman Douglas Murray played in Games 3, 4, 5 of the Canadiens’ series against Boston before coach Michel Therrien replaced him in last night’s Game 6 with a fleetly footed rookie, Nathan Beaulieu. Murray, 34, stands 6’3” and weighs in at 245 pounds. No P.K. Subban, Murray has never really been known for quickness in his nine NHL seasons, or scoring, or on-ice charisma or … well, anyway. The point is, he couldn’t dodge the attention, statistical and otherwise, of the Twitterati while he was in the line-up. A sampling from the shallow end of the (mostly) derision, along with testimony from the coach and the witness himself:
Douglas Murray is in the lineup for Montreal, which is like adding a boat anchor to the ol’ chariot
Douglas Murray trapped in amber in his own zone
Douglas Murray looks like Kirstie Alley on the second flight of stairs.
Wow, Douglas Murray is an absolute turnstile
When Douglas Murray is as gassed as he was on that last shift, he actually travels backwards in time. #mtlhockey
Douglas Murray’s competition and zone starts have gotten easier since 11-12. His possession stats has been consistent
Crankshaft Murray swinging the hammer for @CanadiensMTL !!!
Douglas Murray’s Corsi For through 60 minutes? 6.7 per cent.
Douglas Murray: 0 points, 0 shot attempts, 0 giveaways, 0 takeaways, 6 hits, 4 blocks. The man knows his role.
Michel Therrien on Douglas Murray: “He’s tough to play against. He’s a tough customer.”
i wrote about douglas murray and why playing him is dumb and bad and stupid
Douglas Murray smushes Shawn Thornton, which is not unlike getting smushed by a glacier
Can any move up-ice that incorporates Douglas Murray actually be called a rush?
When Douglas Murray skates by, there’s an eclipse #Habs
“Mon travail, c’est de rendre la vie misérable à mes adversaires”— D. Murray
Watching Douglas Murray is truly mesmerizing
Devastating data on Douglas Murray. Buddy doesn’t belong in the league, let alone on this team. #Habs
Never mind that Murray singlehandedly caused the game winning goal by 1) Not knowing where the puck was, 2) Being way out of position, and 3) Losing a battle to a player playing his first ever NHL playoff game, even without that, he hurts the Canadiens every time he takes the ice.
Nathan Beaulieu over Douglas Murray is like replacing your ’88 Civic with a Porsche 911.
Tweets by: Bruce Arthur, Ted Bird, Gerald Butts, Canadiens, Montréal, Marc Dumont, Extra Skater, Scott Feschuk, Joe Haggerty, Chris Johnston, Mike Kelly, Ryan Lambert, Harrison Mooney, Chris S, and http://www.habseyesonthe prize.com, and Dave Stubbs.
(Photo: Montreal Canadiens)
