VOORHEES, N.J. — Saturday will mark two weeks since Steve Mason last started a game for the Flyers, the longest stretch of inactivity in his career in Philadelphia while the 27-year-old has been healthy.
Flyers coach Dave Hakstol has been riding the “hot hand” in Michal Neuvirth, who guided the Flyers to a 3-2 record in the five games since Mason last started in Toronto, a game which Mason (cramps) took himself out in the third period and Neuvirth eventually got the win in overtime.
Dating back to Jan. 25, Neuvirth has started 10 of 18 games.
Has doubt crept into Mason’s mind that he’s fallen out of favor and is no longer the No. 1 goalie?
“I’m not sure what kind of title you want to put on it,” Mason said “I’ve been counted out a lot during my career so this is nothing new to me. I have that inner-belief. There’s people that say a lot of things about you along your career. But it’s a matter of what you think of yourself. I think I’ve proven myself since I’ve been traded here and I look forward to continuing to do that.”
Perhaps he’ll have the opportunity Saturday night, when the Flyers take on the Columbus Blue Jackets, Mason's former team, with which he won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league's top rookie in 2009.
Hakstol said he won’t announce a starting goalie until Saturday. But it makes sense for Mason to return to action against Columbus, despite Hakstol's saying he doesn’t feel the need to get him into game-action to stay sharp.
NHL
“I think he’s going to be ready to go whenever the call comes,” Hakstol said. “I think he’ll be ready to do a good job for us.”
By all accounts, Mason — whose contract carries a $4.1 million cap hit through the 2016-17 season — has been a good teammate throughout the process, working with Flyers goalie coach Kim Dillabaugh to stay sharp and ready.
"It's part of the job, sometimes,” Mason said. “You've got to come to the rink, put in the work so you're getting better, and also make sure you're giving your teammates a chance to get better during practice time. I think that's something that, overall, I've done a good job of over the last couple weeks here. Put in the quality work and try to be hard to beat in practice. I think if you put the hard work in, eventually you'll get rewarded for it. That's all you can do sometimes."
Mason’s season got off to a rocky start. In the team’s second game of the season, on the road at the Florida Panthers, Mason allowed four goals on eight shots and was pulled from the game. He then left the team for a week tending to a personal family issue.
But his play since then and especially since the calendar turned to 2016 has been strong. In six January starts, Mason compiled a .929 save percentage. He followed that up by going 3-3-1 (one no-decision) in February while stopping 91.7 percent of the shots directed on net. But he hasn’t played a minute since taking himself out of the third period in Toronto on Feb. 20.
Hakstol said Friday that wasn’t a factor in his decisions of late.
Mason said he’s tried to remain positive while not playing. Away from the rink, he said he’s relied on his parents and his fiancée for support.
“We’ve talked about it a lot, it’s been a weird year,” Mason said. “I think if you take away the Florida game there’s been a lot of quality hockey. I’m very comfortable with where I’m at. [Goalie coach Kim Dillabaugh] and I put a lot of work in to try and stay sharp. There’s been, obviously, some ups and downs throughout the season, but I think there’s been a lot of strong hockey to the point where I’m confident in my game. You like to think everyone else is, too.”
Schenn update Saturday
The Flyers said after Friday’s optional practice that an update on Brayden Schenn will come Saturday morning.
Schenn was taken down by Edmonton’s Adam Pardy in the third period and appeared to hit his head on the ice. Schenn returned to the game for a few shifts but did not play in the game’s final six minutes and was not among the dozen or so Flyers who participated in Friday's practice.
Schenn, 24, who can become a restricted free agent at year’s end, has 27 points in his last 27 games.