Replacing Marc-Andre Fleury

Though Murray displaced Fleury as the Penguins’ goalie, in many ways, Murray envies his predecessor.

Someone recently told Murray he is the answer to a trivia question: Who is the only goalie to win two Stanley Cups as a rookie?

“I don’t want to be the answer to a trivia question,” Murray said. “I want to have a career like ‘Flower’ did — the guy who has been so successful for so long.”

Fleury certainly won a lot in Pittsburgh. He made a lot of people smile and laugh, too. It’s a style that only Fleury could pull off, and Murray doesn’t really have the personality or goofiness to try. Simply being himself, Murray figures, makes a ton more sense.

“At the end of the day, I’m not going to fill Marc-Andre Fleury’s shoes,” Murray said. “Nobody’s going to fill Marc-Andre Fleury’s shoes. It’s about being myself, doing the best that I can each and every day, and it’s about being better than I was yesterday.

“My day-to-day thought process isn’t to fill Marc-Andre Fleury’s shoes. If I’d do that, that would be reaching too high. I’m just going to be myself and do what I know how to do, try to take care of what I need to do to be successful.”

When the Penguins won the Stanley Cup in Nashville, Fleury made a somewhat surprising Cup pass to Murray, who got emotional that night. None of that has dissipated.

In fact, Murray insists that he’s “going to miss him every day” but that he’s happy Fleury will get an opportunity to play regularly in Las Vegas.

Still, Murray struggles with the fact that his success came at Fleury’s expense.

“Marc had been such a fixture in Pittsburgh,” Murray said. “To an extent, I feel like I was responsible for him leaving that. I know he probably would rather stay in Pittsburgh his entire career, for sure. I definitely feel bad in that regard.

“We were obviously really tight while playing. He definitely helped me out a lot. We talked a lot. Now I’ll text him just to say good luck with your new team. I hope to see him when I can during the season, say hello to him and say thank you. … It’s a business, but we’re still people.” it was a vertical tear rather than a horizontal tear. I got lucky that it wasn’t too bad.”

His offseason workout regimen is designed by Penguins director of sport science and performance Andy O’Brien, and it’s carried out by Murray’s personal trainer, Steve Bailot, with whom Murray has worked for the past 10 years.

Addressing injury prevention means Murray has spent time this offseason with a chiropractor, adjusting his alignment and paying special attention to his posture.

“He got hurt a lot last year,” Bailot, 39, said. “Those are the little things that we’re trying to strengthen this year, those little tiny muscles that he really has to call on all the time.”

As for the mental side of things, Murray remains as committed as ever. He idolizes Tom Brady — “I know people in Pittsburgh might not like that,” he said — and marvels at how Brady has been able to make up for physical shortcomings with his mind.

“He’s not going to wow you with his speed or strength, but mentally he’s probably the strongest athlete this planet has ever seen,” Murray said. “That’s why he’s got five rings, and that’s why he’s so successful.”