Depth on D: Edmonton Oilers sign veteran Ryan Murray to one-year pact at NHL minimum

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Edmonton Oilers have shored up their defensive depth, announcing on Friday the signing of veteran defenseman Ryan Murray.

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One year, NHL minimum, no word if there’s a minor-league component though a one-way deal seems appropriate for a guy who has played 1 AHL game (a rehab assignment) in his entire career.

The second overall pick in the 2012 NHL Draft behind Nail Yakupov, Murray was rumored to have been the first choice of the Oilers’ scouting staff at the time. He instead wound up in Columbus, where he made the squad in his Draft +2 season.

There he progressed into a top-4 caliber defender, but one who was beset by injuries on seemingly an annual basis. Just twice in his 9 NHL seasons he has played more than 60 games, averaging just 48 GP per year. The league itself has averaged about 78, due to a couple of COVID-abbreviated campaigns. So a little better than 60% attendance rate.

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Never much of a goal scorer, his offense peaked in 2018-19 when he connected for 1-28-29, +20 in just 56 games. That’s north of a 40-point pace. But in subsequent seasons both the games played and the points-per-game numbers have dwindled.

After 7 seasons with the Blue Jackets and one with the New Jersey Devils, Murray joined the Colorado Avalanche in 2021-22. There he played 37 games in a part-time role before being sidelined by a fractured hand in late March. By the time Colorado played the Oilers in the Western Conference Finals he was taking the pregame warm-up with the team, but never cracked the line-up as the Avs rolled to the Stanley Cup.

During the season he was very much a third-pairing guy when he was in the line-up, averaging 14:05 per game. His primary defense partners were Erik Johnson or Jack Johnson (like Murray himself, both veterans who had once been a top-three draft choice). He saw the most ice time with forwards Logan O’Connor and Tyson Jost, and played more minutes with 12 Avs forwards than he did with Nathan MacKinnon.

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Pretty sure Ken Holland sees him the same way Joe Sakic did, as defensive depth capable of stepping up and helping the squad from time to time, even if that help consists of settling down the third pairing for a while. Pretty similar to the role previously occupied by Kris Russell — a #6-7 vet defender who used to be a serviceable #4-5 back in the day. Murray, who’ll turn 29 in the preseason, is both younger and cheaper. (Russell, 34, had a cap hit of $1.25 million last year.)

The Oilers are returning five of their starting d-men that ended last season, with Philip Broberg remaining the favorite to snag the top six spot that opened up when Duncan Keith retired. Murray will provide some cover for the youngster, and more generally against injuries, dangerously assuming he doesn’t get banged up himself.

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The signing might be bad news for a young player like Dmitri SamorukovEdmonton’s #7 prospect projected for the #7 spot on the d corps by this writer earlier today, based on the roster of the moment. With the addition of Murray, Samorukov’s challenge has become more complicated, as has that of fellow prospects. Markus Niemelainen and Vincent Desharnais. The likelihood of the squad keeping 8 d-men on the active roster is increased.

Cult of Hockey prospect series