Penguins not naming goalie

OTTAWA — Marc-Andre Fleury or Matt Murray? The Pittsburgh Penguins aren’t saying which of their two goaltenders will start Game 4 of the Eastern Conference final tonight. Head coach Mike Sullivan said a decision would be announced today ahead of game-time.

“It’s always a hard decision, but it’s a good hard decision because we have two real good goalies,” said Sullivan after a Thursday afternoon practice at the University of Ottawa. “So that’s a decision I never take lightly, that we take very seriously. We try to make the best decisions that we think give our team the best chance to win, and we go from there.”

Who gives Pittsburgh the “best chance” is open to interpretation and neither goalie was revealing much.

Fleury had been stellar in the playoffs before Game 3 on Wednesday when he surrendered four goals on just nine shots before being replaced by Murray.

The 32-year-old, who lost his starting job to Murray last year because of injury, boasts a .924 save percentage in 15 starts this spring. Fleury shut out the Ottawa Senators in a 1-0 Game 2 win and also pitched a 29-save shutout in Game 7 of a second-round series against the Washington Capitals.

“It’s not going to go 16 games in a row perfectly,” said Fleury, smiling during his media availability post-practice. “I put that one behind (me) already and I’ll be ready to go.”

Down 2-1 in the best-of-seven series, Pittsburgh is at least leaving open the question of whether they’ll turn back to Murray, their starter for the bulk of the regular season as well as last year’s run to the Stanley Cup. The 22-year-old suffered a lower-body ailment prior to their playoff opener.

“Either way, I have to be ready,” said Murray.