Arizona Coyotes 2015-16 Player Grades: Connor Murphy
With the Arizona Coyotes 2015-16 season complete, it’s time to dive into each player’s performance and make a final tally on how they fared in the 2015-16 season.
Arizona Coyotes defenseman Connor Murphy recently received a six-year, $23.1M deal on the strength of his potential and his performance last season.
D. Arizona Coyotes. CONNOR MURPHY. B.
Murphy found himself scratched by Head Coach Dave Tippett early on in the season.
Tipp’s move must’ve been the wakeup call #5 needed.
When he returned to the lineup and eventually linked with all-world defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, the pairing really took off.
The youngster rejoined the team and for a time helped the group push into playoff relevancy on the back of repeated strong efforts from AHL call-up Louis Domingue.
In particular, Connor Murphy showcased quite the nasty streak and did an excellent job getting under the skin of the opposition.
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Murph chipped in 6 goals and 11 assists for 17 points; all career highs for the 23-year-old defender. He did this while averaging over 20 minutes of time on ice per game, which was four minutes higher than his average the previous season.
Once Tippett split the Michael Stone and Ekman-Larsson defensive pairing, he began to rely on #5 for increased minutes and responsibility in that slot.
Murphy continued to hold down a spot on the top pairing when OEL went out with an injury, working alongside waiver wire pickup Kevin Connauton to some success and the relief of Arizona Coyotes fans.
Based on his age and the sudden leap in his development, new General Manager John Chayka decided to sign Murphy long term in the hopes that the team could secure the defenseman to a cap-friendly deal as he reaches his prime.
The move is a calculated gamble by John Chayka.
The franchise may pay a touch more for Murphy up front, but it frees the team up immensely on the back end of the contract when several of the franchise’s vaunted prospects will be seeking their own deals.
The trajectory of Murphy at this point is a bit of a mystery, however.
As effective as he and Ekman-Larsson were as a pairing in 2015-16, he was equally ineffective at driving possession. That’s concerning considering he was set up to succeed on that front next to OEL.
If his offensive game grows further – even if it’s just to become “average” – this contract could be a steal.
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His development is crucial now that he’s locked up long term, and the Arizona Coyotes brass are convinced that Connor Murphy is a long term answer in the top-four for the organization.
While we will not know whether the gamble pays off for some time, I certainly have little complaint about the team taking the risk right now.