Neuvirth ready to start all over again

The dawn of the New Year has passed but the March thaw is still two months away, so perhaps the re-start of Michal Neuvirth’s season is coming at the right time for the Flyers and for him.

Time and again, No. 1 goalie Steve Mason was cast in the proverbial position of “hung out to dry” Wednesday night in a 5-2 loss to the New York Rangers. Mason didn’t look like the goalie he was a month or even a couple of weeks ago. Playing in 25 of the last 27 games will do that to a goalie body.

“We haven’t been good enough to a man, starting with myself and on out,” Mason said Friday after a Skate Zone practice. “We have to pick up our game to get back in the win column. Everybody’s got to look at themselves in the mirror, and (say), ‘What can you do better to

help the team?’”

For Mason, the answer should be to have a good night’s rest, then enjoy what’s been a rare backup role Saturday afternoon when the Tampa Bay Lightning visit the Wells Fargo Center. It would seem the perfect spot for Neuvirth, his knee rehab now at an end, to play for the first time since Nov. 12.

“I’m looking forward to playing,” said Neuvirth, whose early season work (4-2, 3.54 goals-against and .859 saves percentage) is in sore need of a winter polishing. “I know I can play at this level and I can play well if I play with confidence.

“It has been a long time. I’m really excited to get back, whether it’s tomorrow or next week, but I’m going to be ready.”

Neuvirth seemed ready to seriously compete with Mason for the No. 1 job coming out of training camp, considering the wondrous work he did in three games of a first-round playoff loss to the Washington Capitals last spring. Fate in the fall of 2016 would not be kind to him, however, but then, when has it been?

Neuvirth’s career has been consistently pockmarked by injury problems, so much so that general manager Ron Hextall admitted Wednesday night “injuries are a reality” for his talented backup goalie. Hextall then acknowledged that’s the primary reason Neuvirth’s future status with the club is so uncertain.

Neuvirth was drafted ahead of Mason in the 2006 draft. Both had professional success at a young age, but both have had their problems in more recent years. Mason looked to be at the top of his game during Neuvirth’s injury, leading the Flyers on a 10game winning streak. But coach Dave Hakstol probably tried to stretch that luck a bit too long, and a tired Mason has not been able to pull the Flyers out of their almost inevitable post-winning streak funk.

The Flyers have lost five straight games and seven of eight.

So Hakstol did the head coaching thing Friday, shuffling his lines at practice and trying to ignite a spark. It’s certainly time for that.

The Lightning matinee is to be followed by a Sunday night meeting with the daunting, NHL-leading Blue Jackets, whose 16-game winning streak ended Thursday night in Washington. Hakstol indicated it’s likely both goalies will get a start this weekend. Though he hasn’t played well over the years against his old team, the Blue Jackets, the thought is Mason will get another chance in Columbus Sunday and Neuvirth has to be ready to go now.

“That’s why we’re playing hockey on the big stage; a lot of pressure on everybody,” Neuvirth said. “I got healthy and right now it’s for me to get back in net and play hockey.”

As it is, no one should spend much time looking ahead while embroiled in the current crunch of a race for playoff spots. But the Flyers’ goaltending situation almost begs for it.

There are still issues at the top of the goaltending feeding chain in this organization, but at the very least it is one wellstocked feeding chain.

Both Neuvirth and Mason, predictably, talked about how much they’d like to remain Flyers, even though both are pending unrestricted free agents and there’s not much indication of ongoing contract talks for either one. Mason is in the final year of a deal carrying a $4.1 million cap hit, Neuvirth finishing out a deal that calls for a $1.65 million cap hit.

Although he was wasn’t given much work while replacing Neuvirth for several weeks, Anthony Stolarz looked good and seems to be waiting in the wings. For now, he’s back as the Phantoms’ top goalie, with Phantoms backup and Yale product Alex Lyon wondering when he’ll get a long-awaited NHL chance. Both Stolarz and Lyon are pending restricted free agents.

Unless one of the two NHL goalies are resigned before the June 20 deadline for a protected list for the Las Vegas expansion draft, the Flyers would have to choose from either Stolarz or Lyon, since they’d be the only players committed to the club for next season.

Oh, and then there are the prospects. Both Carter Hart (Team Canada) and Felix Sandstrom (Sweden) played well in representing their nations at the just completed World Junior Championships.

Anyway, cut to the future talk:

“For sure, I love Philly,” Neuvirth said when asked if he’d like to re-sign. “It’s a great team, great group of guys. So I would love to be back. But I’m focused on playing hockey and focused on this season.”

Mason said he’s of that same mindset, and that talk about his contract is something he’s only seen or heard about through media speculation.

“Honestly, it’s all external, not internal,” Mason said. “Whatever happens will happen, and wherever that might be, that’s not really on the forefront of my mind.” But...

“Yeah, this is where I’ve made my home for the last five years,” Mason said. “I’ve really enjoyed it and we’ll see what Hexy and the organization decide to do.”