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Detroit Red Wings: Petr Mrazek Shines in the Postseason with Hurricanes

By Bob Heyrman

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 13: Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Petr Mrazek (34) makes a third period save on shot by Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom (19) who is defended by right wing Justin Williams (14) on April 13, 2019, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 13: Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Petr Mrazek (34) makes a third period save on shot by Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom (19) who is defended by right wing Justin Williams (14) on April 13, 2019, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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As I watch former Detroit Red Wings goaltender once again shine during the first round of the NHL Playoffs with the Carolina Hurricanes; I can’t help but realize moving him to Philadelphia for a couple of mid-round picks was the wrong decision especially with the current state of the Wings goaltending situation.

Petr Mrazek was supposed to be the goaltender of the future for the Detroit Red Wings. He was groomed in the system playing two full seasons with the Grand Rapids Griffins leading them to a Calder Cup Championship as he was waiting for his opportunity in the show. Mrazek was sensational for the Wings farm team especially down the stretch before finally getting his chance to share the Wings goal with Jimmy Howard.

Howard, similar to Mrazek played his way to Detroit through Grand Rapids working his way to Detroit backing up fan favorite Chris Osgood. The transition didn’t take long before the teacher (Osgood) gave way to the student (Howard) as Osgood served as the back-up allowing Jimmy Howard to excel in the starters role.

The same thing was expected to happen with Petr Mrazek, but the two failed to get along at times in Detroit. It seemed there was a lot of friction between the two netminders as Howard felt he should still be receiving the bulk of the workload, but Mrazek was trending up and expected to unseat Howard for the job. While Howard was battling various injuries, Petr took the goal 54 times during the regular season in 2015/16 posting tremendous numbers.

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That year he posted a record of 27-16-6 with a save percentage of 0.921| 2.33 GAA. Those are excellent numbers coming off of a 26 start season the year before as the primary backup to Howard where he posted very similar numbers. Both of those seasons Mrazek enjoyed an impressive playoff performance against the Lightning, but the team struggled to get through the first round against the juggernaut, but goaltending was certainly not the issue.

The first year Mrazek and the Detroit Red Wings took the Lightning to game seven behind Petr’s 0.925% Save percentage and a 2.11 GAA. The following year against the same club he posted a stellar 0.945% save percentage with a 1.35 GAA and the team lost. When your goaltender plays at that level, you need to look to the offense before you start to point fingers.

Mrazek started to struggle some during the 2016/17 season; he was the definition of “hot & cold” you never knew from game to game which Mrazek you were going to get. He posted a mediocre season save percentage of 0.901% and a goals-against average north of 3.

In my opinion, that was the turning point throughout the Detroit Red Wings front office. I get the feeling the team didn’t expect Mrazek would be able to work through the ups and downs and possibly settle in as a primary backup goalie at the NHL level. Boy were they wrong.

The Detroit Red Wings decided to trade him to the Philadelphia Flyers during the 17/18 season for two draft choices. The two picks were both conditional choices one a fourth-round selection in 2018 (Seth Barton) the other being a third-round conditional pick in 2019. Barton is a 19-year-old right-handed defenseman playing for Umass-Lowell in the NCAA. In 33 games this year he scored twice and recorded eight assists. Unfortunately, I don’t expect Barton to be an NHL caliber defender, but I hope I am wrong.

As I watch Mrazek excel in the playoffs with the Carolina Hurricanes, I can’t help but have a sick feeling in my stomach when you look at the current state of the Wings goaltending situation. A 35-year-old Jimmy Howard and a back-up in Jonathan Bernier. Mrazek who just turned 27-years-old should be the 30-year-old anchor of the rebuilt Red Wings.

The insult to injury is the fact the Wings lack an NHL ready goaltending prospect, yet we watch Mrazek make save after save against the defending Stanley Cup Champions in the first round of the playoffs. The Hurricanes are very much underdogs in the series, and Mrazek’s numbers are nothing like his playoff numbers with Detroit against Tampa, but if you have happened to watch the games, Mrazek is the best Hurricane player on the ice as he continuously gets peppered period after period by Alex Ovechkin and company.

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Mrazek shared the net this year in Carolina, but the team took a flier on the netminder only signing him to a one -year deal this past summer worth 1.5 million dollars. He went 23-14-3 this season with the Canes’ posting a 0.914% save percentage with a 2.39 GAA. To compare Howard posted a 0.909% save percentage with a 3.07 GAA while going 23-22-5 on the season.

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