Flyers: Carter Hart named to Top 25 Under 25 list

While the young Flyers goaltender is apparently not a top goaltender, Hart is one of the best young players around the league.

There are a lot of young players in the NHL that have been able to make their marks early in their careers. In fact, there are way more than 25 of them. There appeared to be some tough omissions from the list. The Flyers have a few that could’ve made said list.

Ivan Provorov and Travis Konecny, while having strong starts to their careers, were cited as just missing the list. Provorov has developed into the Flyers top defensemen. And he may very well one day be a Norris Trophy candidate if he keeps things up.

Konecny has consistently put up 20+ goals during his first few seasons. He was in the midst of a breakout campaign before the season was paused. While he earned a new career high in points, he once again finished with 24 goals. So he was due to break that with 13 games remaining.

While those two are good for their age, there were simply just too many other young players above them. Players like Connor McDavid, Mathew Barzal, Mitch Marner, Patrik Laine, etc. The list could go on and on.

The Flyers did have one player who, while towards the bottom, did find himself on the list. There are a few young goaltenders who have made a name for themselves, but Carter Hart is the only one who made it on the list.

Mackenzie Blackwood, often compared to Hart, was one of those players who just missed the list. He was the only other goaltender to be mentioned.

We’ve gone into Hart’s stats many times, but there are impressive for a goaltender of his age. And it didn’t just start in the NHL. The young goaltender shined on almost a nightly basis in the Western Hockey League. He was the Top Goaltender in the WHL three years in a row.

He had the league’s best GAA during his first season in the WHL. That success transferred over to the NHL during his rookie season. He was named the Rookie of the Month in January. He finished with a 16-13-1 record, increasing his win total to 24 this season while appearing in 12 more games.

Hart was the Flyers best player during the postseason, helping them to a seventh game in the second round. And all of this comes at just 22-years-old. So there’s no doubt that he will be on this list for the next few years.

And the Flyers certainly won’t have to worry about their goaltending position during that time frame as well. All that matters is what his next contract might look like. And with another strong season, he could be looking at a lengthy deal.