Carter Hart Steals Flyers Fans Hearts
Carter Hart is special folks. There’s absolutely no denying that.
He became the first Flyers goalie to record his 20th home-ice win in 24 or fewer games since Flyers legend Bernie Parent did it back in 1977. That was another statement game by Carter Hart, making 38 saves on 39 shots.
All of “Flyers Nation” is really excited about this Flyers team and rightfully so, but they’re particularly excited with the play of their “Goalie of the future” Carter Hart. But I’d like to take a different approach to that and tell you that not only is Carter Hart the “Goalie of the Future” but he’s undoubtedly also the “Goalie of the Present”.
Photo: Twitter
During the 2016 NHL’s entry draft, when then-GM Ron Hextall and the Philadelphia Flyers drafted the first goalie selected with the 48th overall pick, many thought that Carter Hart, like many Flyers prospects during the Hextall regime, would take 3-5 years before getting a taste of any NHL action.
But when current GM Chuck Fletcher took over, that train of thought went out the window. In mid-December 2018, due to injuries, a 20-year-old Carter Hart was called up and he’s never looked back. After a real solid rookie season, Hart has had a fantastic sophomore season. Particularly on home ice.
Hart’s record at home this season is an impressive 20-2-2 with a 1.61 GAA and a .944 SV%. No goalie in the NHL has better stats at home (or on the road for that matter). Hart has been so impressively dominant at home, that the Wells Fargo Center is back to being a dreaded place for opponents to come play in. Overall, the Flyers have a record of 25-5-4 on home ice, but only a 16-15-3 record on the road. However, Hart and the Flyers have started to turn things around on the road as well. They’ve won 4 of their last 5 games on the road, which include dominating victories over the Capitals and Panthers, and 2 more victories over the Blue Jackets, Rangers.
Photo: NHL Public Relations
Hart has been so dominant at such a young age, that he became the 1st goaltender in NHL history to record multiple win streaks of 7 games or more at the age of 21 or younger. Since the All-Star break, Hart has played 10 games and has a record of 9-1-0 with a 1.78 GAA and a 934 SV%.
As a result, the Flyers are now on pace for a 107-point season and are currently tied with the Washington Capitals for 1st place in the tough Metropolitan Division, something that seemed like an impossibility just a couple of months ago. Fact is, without Hart’s dominance in the crease, Flyers are not in that conversation.
Hart is so positionally sound that he always seems to be at the right place at the right time. Once again after Saturday night’s game, head coach Alain Vigneault said that Carter Hart was the “difference in the game”, and he absolutely was. He just makes it look easy. Right now, the Flyers are tied with the 4th best record in the entire NHL, and the next 2 games are against the top 2 teams in the NHL.
Hart and the Flyers need to keep rolling and secure home-ice advantage in the playoffs. They’ve been so good at home, that NO TEAM wants to face the Flyers at Wells Fargo Center 4 times in a 7-game playoff series.
The Flyers have a chance to do something really special this season, but that starts with securing a home-ice advantage, and it all rests on the shoulders of a very talented young 21-year-old phenom goaltender of the present: Carter Hart.
Featured Image: NHL Public Relations/NHL.com
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Categorized:Flyers