Carter Hart entered the 2019-20 season with some unknowns. Some questions were how would this young netminder handle the rigors of a full NHL season, or would he get rattled enough to just give up during a game if the wheels start falling off the bus? Valid questions, but it turns out Carter had a great season at just the ripe age of 21 and 22-years-old.
Hart had some downs, however, his season was mainly filled with ups. He was able to rid of some bad habits with cutting down angles, and making himself bigger in the net after working tirelessly with Kim Dillabaugh. Hart was just spectacular for the most part in just his first full season for the Flyers. He posted a 24-13-3 record, with a 2.42 GAA (8th best in the league), and a .914 Save Percentage. What more could one expect from a then 21-year-old in just his first full season in the NHL. At home he was lights out accumulating a 20-3-2 record, 1.63 GAA, and a .943 Save Percentage. Simply put, Hart proved he was the franchise Goaltender the Flyers have needed since President Reagan was in office, and the proof is in the pudding. Hart has won the 9th most playoff games in Flyers history for Goaltenders:
A lot of people love Hart for different reasons, it’s not always just how he performs on the ice, he’s just a good person. However, on the ice Hart kicked butt. In just his first playoffs he registered an 9-5 record, 2.20 GAA, and a .928 Save Percentage. Talk about taking your game to the next level.
“He was Carter Hart last night,” Nate Thompson said Thursday, “He made some big saves at key moments of the game. Even after a couple goals and they tie it up, you see the bounce back in the big saves he made in overtime, especially on that breakaway. He was our backbone and he has been this whole time. No surprise here.”
“I think before games, he’s in a zone,” Claude Giroux said, “He kind of does his own thing. I think pretty much how a goalie is. Off the ice when we are back in the bubble, I think he is great storyteller. I think he’s funny in his own way. He’s a goalie. He’s funny.”
Hart is just one of the guys in the locker room. He really enjoys being around this club and they enjoy being around him, “You know what, since Day 1, since I came up last year, I felt that right from the beginning,” Hart said on Wednesday, “We have a really good leadership group here with Jake, Coots, G, Brauner, Nisky, and the list goes on. We have a really good group of guys here. We all gel really well together. We’re the kind of group where outside the rink we are always doing things together and having fun. I think that’s really important. For me as a younger guy, you feel like you are a part of the team right from the beginning. That’s special. When I came up there, my first two weeks, obviously I was very nervous. I didn’t want to step on anybody’s toes. Right from Day 1 since I got here, they’ve all made me feel like part of the group.”
This young man in Hart has electrified the fan base, and has cemented himself as the guy between the pipes for the orange and black for the foreseeable future. Most fans knew he was special, but it was great to see him flourish down the stretch in big playoff like atmosphere games, but this will be a little different than anyone is used to when the hockey season reconvenes. Hart knows he has stay focused, but have fun in the same token. He is the real deal, and he takes all the blame for a loss. That’s just what good players do. Hart will continue to have a lot of highs, but some lows, as well. We as people just have to remember, he is just 22-years-old with just so much potential, and eventually he will hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup on Broad Street.
