Shocking development involving goaltender Matt Murray.

It would appear as though the relationship between goaltender Matt Murray and the Ottawa Senators may have gone south less than 2 years into the 4 year contract he signed with the organization.

On Friday night the Ottawa Senators made the curious decision of making Murray a healthy scratch ahead of their matchup against the Anaheim Ducks, opting instead to go with Anton Forsberg in net. It was a curious move because Murray has already missed time due to health issues and also due to the fact that Forsberg is not having a particularly strong season so far.

Were it not for the fact that Murray currently carries a cap hit of $6.25 million, a number that I suspect no team will be willing to take on with Murray in his current form, I would have speculated that the Senators could be protecting Murray for a potential trade. Murray hasn't been traded, but that may have been exactly the thought process that led to his scratch this evening.

According to National Hockey League insider Elliotte Friedman, the Senators are set to make a drastic move on Saturday when they will place the veteran goaltender on waivers.

Waivers means that any team in the league will be able to submit a claim for Murray prior to the Senators having the option of sending him down to the American Hockey League, but again I suspect that given his current form and current contract that no such claim will be forthcoming. Not only does Murray carry a cap hit of $6.25 million but he was signed to a back loaded deal, which means the actual salary in the final two years of his deal ($7 million and $8 million respectively) will be considerably higher than his cap hit, one more reason for teams to shy away.

Worst of all however has been Murray's inability to remain healthy and his inconsistent performance in goal, both which have no doubt contributed to this decision from the Senators. Murray has appeared in only 6 games this season and has posted a 3.26 goals against average and a .890 save percentage.

Here's one particularly brutal take on this situation: