All eyes on Murray

KELOWNA, B.C. -- Playing with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds this season, Matthew Murray has been splitting time in net with Jack Campbell, the Dallas Stars' 2010 first-round pick who arrived in a trade earlier this season.

Campbell has played the majority of the games since arriving in November, leaving Murray -- ranked second among North American goaltenders in NHL Central Scouting's midterm rankings for the 2012 NHL Draft -- stuck in the backup role and leaving him few opportunities to impress the scouts in his draft season.

Wednesday night, however, he was the center of attention at the 2012 Top Prospects Game, stopping 17 of 18 shots in playing the second half of the game.

"Coming off the bench is not an easy thing to do," said Team Cherry assistant coach Ryan Huska. "And as soon as he got put in he had a tough scoring chance against and he made a good save. He gave his team the feeling he'd be there for them. He held us in when we were giving up some pretty good chances at the end of the game."

For his effort, Murray took home his team's Jim Gregory Award for being named Team Cherry's player of the game.

"For me this was a really cool experience," said Murray. "This is the first time I've done anything like this."

It also gave him a chance to be watched by scouts from 30 NHL teams.

"It's nice," said Murray. "There's a lot of eyes on you at this game. I feel like I played pretty well. It's definitely good for me going forward."

That includes returning to platoon with Campbell, who he's credited for being a positive influence since arriving in Sault Ste. Marie. In 29 games, Murray is 11-15-1 with a 4.15 goals-against average and .872 save percentage on the last-place team in the OHL's West Division.

"Jack being a first round pick … he's taught me so much since he's come in from the trade," said Murray. "I want to thank him a lot for what he's done for me and for our organization. He's been nothing but a positive influence on me and the rest of the team."

Contact Adam Kimelman at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @NHLAdamK