With Neuvirth Now Injured, What Now for the Flyers in Goal?

By Jeff Quake, Sports Talk Philly staff writer 

Now that Michal Neuvirth is potentially out due to injury, joining fellow netminder Brian Elliott on the Flyers injured list, where do the Philadelphia Flyers and GM Ron Hextall look?

Neuvirth was injured in Sunday's game against the New York Rangers in the first period on Mats Zuccarello’s 10^th goal of the season, in just his fourth start since Elliott went on injured reserve. Alex Lyon came in relief for Neuvirth, but did not have a backup for the rest of the game.

With the NHL trade deadline approaching in one week, Hextall may not have a choice anymore but to agree to a deal to bring in either a veteran goaltender in or at least a goaltender with some prior NHL experience this season.

Earlier this week, it was reported by Helene St James from the Detroit Free Press that the Detroit Red Wings sent an offer to Philadelphia which would send goaltender Petr Mrazek to the Flyers in exchange for the Flyers 2018 third-round pick.

This would have solved the Flyers problems, however a few aspects come into play for this trade. First, that is not enough for Detroit in return for a goaltender who is a big presence in net, with a record of 8-6-3 this year appearing in 21 games with a 2.88 GAA and a .909 SV%. His career record is 72-57-20 in 165 total games.

In order for the Flyers to complete this deal, they would most likely have to give up a Grade B prospect in the process. Clearly Hextall did not like something in that deal, but he cannot wait too long. The Flyers host the Montreal Canadians on Tuesday night and have two more games later in the week before the deadline hits next Monday.

An important detail to keep in mind is that Hextall would prefer to acquire a goaltender with a small contract, so in other terms a goalie like Mrazek would be perfect contract wise. The 26-year old’s $4 million contract expires at the end of the year and will become a restricted free agent during the offseason if he does not get an extension.

Some other goaltending options for Philadelphia could include Antti Raanta of the Arizona Coyotes, Jonathan Bernier of the Colorado Avalanche or Robin Lehner of the Buffalo Sabres. Probably one of the better options is if none of those goaltenders fit Hextall’s criteria, then they could always call up Dustin Tokarski from their AHL affiliate in Lehigh Valley.

Tokarski has NHL experience, but more importantly NHL playoff experience as well. If the name sounds familiar, it is because Tokarski replaced Carey Price after he was taken out by Chris Kreider in Game 1 of the 2014 Eastern Conference Finals. Tokarski was 2-3 in the playoffs that year with a 2.60 GAA and a .916 SV%. In his NHL career, Tokarski is 10-12-5 in 27 starts and 34 appearances.

Regardless of what move the Flyers GM makes, expect the Flyers to have a new face behind the pipes by the time the NHL trade deadline is over in a week.