At the most crucial time of the season, the Flyers are losing one half of their goalie tandem.
Michal Neuvirth, who was expected to start Saturday's game against the Penguins, was pulled last-minute for Steve Mason after "not feeling well." Neuvirth will be out for three weeks with a lower-body injury, GM Ron Hextall announced on Sunday.
The timeline has Neuvirth out for essentially the remainder of the regular season.
Neuvirth is 17-8-4 with a 2.28 GAA and .925 save percentage in what has been a career year for the long-time backup goalie. Neuvirth earned more of a starting role this season, splitting net-minding duties with Mason.
The Flyers, of course, will now have to rest a lot on Mason moving forward. Mason is 17-16-8 with a 2.62 GAA and .915 save percentage.
The Flyers will call up Anthony Stolarz from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms to serve as the backup. This time, given the number of back-to-backs on the Flyers schedule, it seems like Stolarz will get his chance to debut in the NHL. Stolarz has been an emergency call-up several times and call-ups through injury over the course of the season.
The Flyers return to action on Monday night when they start a four-game road trip against the New York Islanders.
Kevin Durso is managing editor for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Durso.
