The Philadelphia Flyers seem pretty set at the top of their goaltending depth chart with the 27-year-old Steve Mason. Beyond Mason though, there seems to be uncertainty in net at the NHL level and according to the latest report, Flyers GM Ron Hextall may have his sights set on young netminder Michal Neuvirth as the new back-up on Broad Street.
"Flyers among the teams that have shown solid interest in Michal Neuvirth... we shall see," ESPN's Pierre LeBrun tweeted in the hours leading to the NHL's 2015-16 free agency period.
Mase finished the 2014-15 season with an 18-18-11 record in 48 starts - not a great win-loss split by any means, but that had so much less to do with his play in net and so much more to do with the abysmal defensive effort he was forced to endure on a nightly basis throughout the season. His .928 save percentage and 2.25 goals against average only serve to drive that point home.
Razor Ray Emery has been the backup for the past couple of seasons - he signed a one-year, $1 million contract with Philly to return for the 2014-15 season - but inconsistency and a degenerative hip issue have robbed him of the stellar skills that at once made him one of the most athletically gifted goalies in all of hockey.
Neuvirth, 27, has had something of a rocky NHL road thus far. Drafted by the Washington Capitals in the second-round of the 2006 NHL Draft, he spend five seasons, from 2008-09 to 2012-13 with the NHL's D.C.-based franchise. He never appeared in more than 48 games though and ultimately ended up being dealt to the Buffalo Sabres midway through the 2013-14 season.
He spent the remainder of that season and the early portion of 2014-15 with the Sabres, but was dealt as part of the Buffalo teardown and rebuild to the New York Islanders to back-up Jaroslav Halak for the run up to and through the playoffs.
At 6-foot-1, 209-pounds, Neuvirth has moderately good size, but has proven to be nothing more than a career back-up to this point despite his fairly lofty draft status. His collective goals against average in seven NHL seasons is 2.73 and his save percentage is .912.
UPDATE, 1:00 PM: Flyers make it official.
Flyers have signed goalie Michal Neuvirth to two-year deal, $1.5 M in Year 1 and $1.75 million in Year 2
— Pierre LeBrun (@Real_ESPNLeBrun) July 1, 2015
