How Flyers Prepare for Life Without Simmonds, Neuvirth

One Czech is out, and another has checked in.

Petr Mrazek has endured a rather eventful past 24 hours. Following news of the trade to the Flyers, Mrazek didn't go to bed until 2 a.m. and was awake at 4 a.m. to catch a flight to Philadelphia that had him at the Wells Fargo Center in time for the Flyers' morning skate.

"I didn't see it coming," Mrazek said Tuesday. "I got a call at 9:30 from (Red Wings GM) Ken Holland and then Ron Hextall. Yeah, I'm excited. A couple of months ago I had a good conversation with Ken Holland about it and he said if he had a good opportunity to do it, he was going to try and move me. I was really happy."

With Michal Neuvirth now expected to miss the next four to six weeks with a lower-body injury, and Brian Elliott scheduled to be out until late March recovering from core muscle surgery, Mrazek will now be the Flyers' go-to guy in net. 

"Petr's a proven guy," head coach Dave Hakstol said. "That goes without saying. We've said all along we have confidence in Alex (Lyon) and he's starting tonight, but Hexy alluded to it, going out and getting an established veteran NHL goaltender and that's what Petr is."

Mrazek's game has definitely reached another level since the calendar flipped to 2018. The 26-year-old netminder has a 5-3-2 record to go along with a 2.29 GAA and a .925 save percentage since Jan. 1. 

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"I changed a couple of things during the summer," Mrazek said. "I didn't play much the first half of the season and it was tough for me to find my game playing once in two weeks or once in three weeks. It was tough but I worked hard during that stretch on the ice to try and improve my game, and I think over the past few months it was going in the right direction."

Mrazek will also find comfort in a clubhouse with three Czech teammates: forward Jakub Voracek, defenseman Radko Gudas and Neuvirth. They've played together at the IIHF World Championships and the World Cup of Hockey.

"I won't be surprised if we signed Jags after the Olympics," Voracek said jokingly regarding Jaromir Jagr. "Obviously, something needs to be done regarding Neuvy and Elliott. Petr's a great goalie and I think we're having a great season this year. Obviously, he's very competitive. As long as we find a way to win with him in the net, that's all that matters."  

"They're different style goalies for sure," Gudas said of the differences between Mrazek and Neuvirth. "He's a great goaltender who challenges a lot. That's a good thing for us to have someone who cares as much as he does. I think our goalies were doing a really good job of keeping our defense intact and keeping them honest, and I think Petr is going to do the same thing, especially our young D corps, and help them out." 

In Bloom
Many expected Oskar Lindblom to make the Flyers out of training camp. Few expected the call-up to come during the heat of a playoff race. 

Regardless, the 21-year-old Swede will make his NHL debut Tuesday against the Canadiens and should see an extended look into March following an upper-body injury to Wayne Simmonds. The Flyers' power forward is expected to miss the next two to three weeks of action.

"I've grown as a person and as a player," Lindblom said. "I just felt I had to go down there (Lehigh Valley) and just do my thing and get better every day."

"It's so valuable going into the American League and have the opportunity to gain that experience, especially for Oskar being his first year in the smaller NHL rink," Hakstol said. "He's grown as a player. I think his confidence has always been good."

Certainly, confidence won't be lacking as Lindblom was lighting it up with the Phantoms, scoring a goal in three straight games, along with another scoring streak that included five goals in a six-game span.  

"I don't know why I've been that way this season," Lindblom said. "But it's good when it comes and I need to keep riding on that wave a little bit."

"He's got a great shot, great hockey sense," Claude Giroux said. "He's been playing some great hockey with the Phantoms, and he's a great guy in the locker room, too, so I'm pretty excited to see him on the ice since I haven't seen him in awhile."

Lindblom will be on the Flyers' third line along with center Scott Laughton and winger Michael Raffl.

"He's a smart player, a really heady player," Laughton said. "I'm excited to play with him. I haven't talked to him too much. I'm sure we'll talk more before the game with what me and Raffl like to do and we'll go out there and continue to push forward and look for him in the slot where he likes to score goals."

Projected lines and pairings
Claude Giroux-Sean Couturier-Travis Konecny

Jakub Voracek-Nolan Patrick-Jordan Weal

Oskar Lindblom-Scott Laughton-Michael Raffl

Jori Lehtera-Valtteri Filppula-Dale Weise


Ivan Provorov-Shayne Gostisbehere

Andrew MacDonald-Robert Hagg

Brandon Manning-Radko Gudas


Alex Lyon

Petr Mrazek

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