Philadelphia Flyers: Move aside Rocky, Carter Hart is the hero Philly needs

Carter Hart is the hero that the Philadelphia Flyers and the City of Brotherly Love both deserve and need right now.

Like all great quests, the Philadelphia Flyers’ journey for their franchise netminder was a path fraught with massive letdowns, abject failures and false hope, but they appear to finally have their man and chosen one in Carter Hart.

In a lengthy and mostly fruitless search since Ron Hextall hung up his skates in the wake of the 1998-99 season, the Flyers were often defined by their lack of identity between the pipes.

It was a rather large and notable blemish that held them back time and time again, proving the difference between Stanley Cup Playoffs glory and bitter and crushing disappointment that has become the unwanted hallmark of Philly sports.

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And you have to go back even further than the Hextall days to when a goaltender led the Philadelphia Flyers to the promised land, with the glory years of Hall Famer Bernie Parent and those two Stanley Cup successes in 1973-74 and 1974-75 still looming large over the current vintage in orange and black.

Therefore, goaltending is no cake walk in Philadelphia and it isn’t for the fainthearted either, as the likes of Michael Leighton, Antero Niittymaki, Roman Cechmanek, Maxime Ouellet and the infamous Ilya Bryzgalov can quite clearly attest to.

So bad was the fortunes of those keeping net for the Flyers that many came to the logical and sane conclusion that a curse had been put on the franchise, one that seemed unbreakable and destined to haunt the city of Philadelphia forever.

However, just as Eagles fans hope Carson Wentz is their long-awaited savior, 76ers fans hope Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons can vindicate “The Process” and Phillies fans pray that Bryce Harper is the true answer, Flyers fans have pinned all of their hopes and dreams on the young shoulders of Carter Hart.

And, so far, they are being rewarded in the sweetest way possible.

Despite his tender years, Hart looks every inch the franchise goalie that the Flyers have invested endless resources into unearthing, hardly putting a foot wrong since bursting onto the NHL scene during the 2018-19 season.

Surrounded by a boatload of hype, fanfare and pressure, Flyers fans longed for just a tantalizing sight of their potential goalie of the future, but were so often denied by an organization that, so clearly scarred by their many mistakes of the past, tried to keep their next great hope hidden and protected for as long as possible.

But, after making 20 saves in a win on his NHL debut against the Detroit Red Wings on Dec. 18, 2018, Hart has never looked back and has proven that he can handle the responsibility of being a goaltender in Philly and finally snapping the curse that has stifled this franchise for so, so long.

He went 16-13-1 with a .917 Save Percentage and a 2.83 Goals Against Average the rest of the way in 2018-19, while contributing a Point Share of 6.7.

However, if the 22-year-old is to fulfil his lofty promise and go on to carve out a Hall of Fame career like some expect, then we will look back on the 2019-20 season as the year that Carter Hart truly came of age.

Fully entrenched as the Flyers’ No. 1 starter with trusty veteran Brian Elliott as his backup, Hart took this franchise on his young shoulders and, in an instant, a whole sports mad city fell in love with arguably their most naturally gifted netminder since the great Bernie Parent.

Hart led Philadelphia to second place in the Metro Division with a 24-13-3 record with one shutout to go along with a 2.42 Goals Against Average and a .914 Save Percentage, coupled with an impressive Quality Start Percentage of .625.

To add some context, the last Flyers goalie to record 20 or more wins and a sub-1.63 GAA on home ice was Parent (27 wins, 1.40 GAA in 1974-75), and we all know how his career turned out.

This past season was also the year that Hart got his first taste of Stanley Cup Playoffs hockey, the true making of any young stud with aspirations of becoming a star in the NHL.

And Hart didn’t disappoint, providing some iconic moments to help take the Flyers to the Second Round of the postseason for the first time since the 2011-12 season, while posting a 2.23 Goals Against Average, a .926 Save Percentage and two shutouts to go with a 9-5-0 record.

Granted, there were some growing pains along the way but that is only to be expected of a 22-year-old who has been thrust into a fierce sports market with the hopes of many resting on him.

Those small little bugaboos aside, though, Hart emerged as the franchise goaltender that the Philadelphia Flyers have long craved, and his mature mentality, poise, calming influence and laid-back personality suggests that he’s built for this job and he’s built for the intense Philly market.

While still a small sample size and overall body of work, Hart boasts all the physical and mental intangibles expected and required of an elite NHL goaltender, and he’s already sparked new life into a team that looks ready to compete for the greatest prize in all of sports.

With Hart leading an exciting young core featuring the likes of defenseman Ivan Provorov and forward Travis Konecny, coupled with a stable of veterans that still have plenty left in the tank, the future looks bright for the Flyers and a lot of that is down to the fact that they have seemingly solved one of the biggest mysteries in all of sports.

With their franchise goaltender now fully anointed and in place and in a city where the fictional but iconic shadow of Rocky looms large, Philadelphia Flyers fans and the city where grit and toughness were invented now has a new hero to root for and invest in.

And, if he turns out to be anything close to previous franchise greats like Bernie Parent or Ron Hextall, then Carter Hart will no doubt find himself in the annals of rich hockey history and regarded as the true chosen one that finally broke the curse and resurrected the art of goaltending for the Philadelphia Flyers.