Fleury a worthy Masterton nomininee for Penguins, who may need him yet
Marc-Andre Fleury is the Penguins' Masterton Trophy nominee for the 2016-17 season, the Pittsburgh chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association announced Monday, and the qualities Fleury displayed in earning the nod may yet come in quite handy for the Penguins.
The Masterton Trophy is presented to a "player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey," with all 30 teams represented by a nominee.
In Fleury's case, the nomination is well earned.
At this point last year, Fleury was the Penguins' number one starter and de facto franchise goalie, having backstopped the team since being selected first overall at the 2003 NHL Draft.
A late-season injury, however, pressed rookie Matt Murray into action, and he ran with the opportunity all the way to a Stanley Cup win, despite Fleury's eventual return to health.
Fleury has subsequently taken a permanent back seat to Murray, and is a likely candidate to be moved in the offseason, either by trade or through the expansion draft.
In the meantime, he may be called upon with greater regularity down the stretch if recent trends continue.
Fleury has posted a record of 3-1-2 in March, with a .944 save percentage, while Murray, even before Sunday's lopsided loss to Philadelphia in which he allowed five goals, recently admitted he's not at the top of his game.
Matt Murray pretty hard on himself. Called his play lately "average" and "mediocre."
— Jason Mackey (@JMackeyPG) March 18, 2017
All things considered, the starting job remains Murray's as the postseason nears, but Fleury - who's accepted his new role with grace - may not have written the final chapter of his story with the Penguins quite yet.