In NHL history, 22 goalies have a perfect save percentage. Granted, none of them have more than two appearances to their name. Of those 22, two goalies have recorded a loss despite never allowing a goal. Adam Wilcox was the second, making 14 stops in relief for Buffalo in 2018. But the first to ever do it wore a Carolina Hurricanes sweater.
Mike Murphy was selected in the sixth round of the 2008 Draft by the Hurricanes. He'd experienced success in juniors, winning the OHL's Goaltender of the Year in 2008 and 2009 before making the jump to the professional ranks. His numbers in the AHL were solid, sitting a tick below a .920 save percentage with the Checkers in 2010-11.
Murphy earned his first call-up to the NHL in 2011 after backup goalie Brian Boucher suffered an injury on December 3rd against Pittsburgh, a 3-2 loss in which Boucher made 37 stops. The Hurricanes were not playing well, entering play against the Calgary Flames on December 6th at 8-16-4. While Cam Ward would get the start, Murphy was dressed in case relief was needed.
With family and friends in the crowd, Ward did not have a great night. The Canes were on the wrong side of a 2-0 game after 20 minutes that only got worse when Brendan Morrison scored 42 seconds into the second period to extend the lead to three. Jiri Tlusty was hauled down and awarded a penalty shot, which he scored on with a beautiful move against Miikka Kiprusoff to break the shutout.
Tim Brent brought the Hurricanes within a goal, but the next two goals belonged to the Flames after Rene Bourque scored late in the second and Morrison added his second of the night early in the third period. Tuomo Ruutu interrupted Calgary's scoring by inadvertently redirecting Jamie McBain's shot, but Mikael Backlund scored on the power play to restore Calgary's three-goal lead.
Murphy steps in, the Hurricanes make it close, but it's too late
During the ensuing commercial break shortly after the goal, Kirk Muller faced a tough decision. With this being the first half of an Alberta back-to-back, Muller lifted Ward in preparation for the Oilers, allowing 23-year-old Mike Murphy the chance to make his NHL debut. The team tried their best to rally. Eric Staal made it 6-4 after Kiprusoff turned it over and left the net wide open.
Jerome Iginla scored his second goal of the night into the empty net, seemingly putting the game away for good. While he'd entered the game with a little under nine minutes left, Murphy didn't face his first shot until there was one minute remaining, swallowing a chance from deep. With 31 seconds left, Chad LaRose put the deficit back to two goals.
After Murphy made his second stop of the night, Staal scored his second of the game with just under five seconds remaining, making it look closer than it was. The Canes couldn't find the tying goal, falling 7-6 to the Flames. Morrison finished the night with four points (2G, 2A), while Iginla (2G, 1A), Olli Jokinen (3A), and Staal (2G, 1A) all finished with three.
With Murphy as the goalie of record when Iginla scored the empty-net goal, which also served as the game-winner, Murphy was credited with the loss despite allowing zero goals. Murphy became the first goalie in NHL history to record a loss before allowing their first NHL goal. It's a crazy way to be remembered in the history books.
The extra rest paid off for Ward the following night. The Hurricanes responded with a 5-3 victory over the Oilers, earning Kirk Muller his first win after relieving Paul Maurice a few weeks prior. Two days later, Murphy made his second, and final, appearance, relieving Ward once again after allowing four goals in a period in a half. Murphy made seven stops in relief as the Canes fell, 4-2, to Winnipeg.
Losing without allowing a goal is not something you want to be remembered by, especially since there wasn't anything he could do about it. Murphy did his job that night in Calgary. While he wasn't under fire until the final minute, he stood tall and stayed perfect. Unfortunately, his team waited too long to score, earning him his spot in the record books.