Goalie Stolarz returns from injured list

First, goalie Brian Elliott went on the injured list for the Flyers. Then, on Saturday, Michal Neuvirth went down with an injury leaving the Flyers scrambling in goal.

Former Phantoms goalie Alex Lyon, who was replacing Elliott on the Flyers roster, played the rest of Saturday’s game with no backup. While there’s no good time for an injury, the fact that GM Ron Hextall still had a few days before the NHL trade deadline hit was somewhat of a silver lining.

On Monday, the Flyers pulled the trigger and acquired Petr Mrazek for a pair of conditional draft picks; their third-rounder in 2018 and a fourth-rounder in 2019. The 2018 pick could move up to being a second-rounder depending on Mrazek’s performance the rest of the season and in the postseason. The 2019 pick is conditional depending on whether he re-signs with the Flyers following the season.

There was a second goalie move on Monday. Anthony Stolarz, who had the inside track to being the Flyers starting goalie this season, was activated from the injured list and loaned to Lehigh Valley. Stolarz underwent surgery for a torn meniscus in September and hasn’t played since. After some tune up time with Lehigh Valley, Stolarz could potentially join the Flyers next month either as the starting goalie or as Mrazek’s backup.

For now, the Phantoms will have Stolarz in goal, with NHL veteran Dustin Tokarski backing him up. Goalie John Muse, who has also played well in goal for the Phantoms, will return to Reading to help solidify their goal situation. On Sunday, Muse stopped 22 shots as the Phantoms downed rival Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 5-1 to increase their lead in the Atlantic Division to eight points over both the Penguins and Providence, who also lost on Sunday.

Lehigh Valley also has the highest winning percentage in the division, but has played four more games than the Pens and two more than Providence.

“John’s played great. I don’t think we could ask him to play any better in the six games that he’s played for us,” said coach Scott Gordon following Sunday’s win over the Penguins.

Long-term, the goalie situation is interesting, since Mrazek, Lyon and Stolarz are all restricted free agents following the season. Tokarski is an unrestricted free agent following the 2017-2018 campaign, and it’s unlikely that he’ll be retained. Mrazek is also most likely to be leaving, considering his price tag.

It’s most likely that Stolarz stays and steps into the starter’s role with the Flyers, with Neuvirth, who is signed for another season, serving as his backup. Brian Elliott also has another season left on his contract, meaning that someone among the group could be used as a trade piece during the offseason.

In addition to the other moves on Monday, forward Oskar Lindblom was recalled by the Flyers from Lehigh Valley. The 21-year old is in his first professional season and had 16 goals and 18 assists with the Phantoms.

MARTEL RETURNS ... Danick Martel officially returned to the ice Friday for Lehigh Valley after missing a month of action. Martel said he was a little tentative on the ice until he took a couple hits and then realized he was OK and got back into the flow of the game. He finished the night with two goals. It’s been an up-and-down year for Martel, who made his NHL debut earlier in the season before suffering a broken jaw on a blind hit.

EIGHT IS ENOUGH ... Lehigh Valley tied a franchise record with eight goals in Friday’s 8-2 win in Springfield, dating back to 2000 when the team played in Philadelphia. The Lehigh Valley incarnation of the Phantoms last scored eight goals in December of 2016. Corban Knight was credited with a hat trick, with the third goal coming on a weird play. Springfield had pulled their goalie on a delayed penalty and a badly executed pass by the Thunderbirds wound up in the net. Knight was the last Phantom to touch the puck, so he was credited with the goal.

STREAKING ON THE ICE ... In addition to tying the record for the most goals in a game, Lehigh Valley established a new franchise record for consecutive games with five or more goals scored when they made it four straight in the win over Springfield. Unfortunately, on Saturday, the Phantoms suffered a 3-2 shootout loss to Hartford to break the streak. They have picked up points in seven straight games, with their next game scheduled for Wednesday night in Utica.