Twelve Potential Flyers Hall of Famers: Part Two
STEVE MASON
Yes, I know what you’re thinking. “Really, you put Steve Mason on this list?” Yes, and despite the animosity he receives from a solid portion of the fanbase, he was a lot better than he gets credit for in his time with the Flyers.
Mason arrived in Philadelphia at the 2013 trade deadline from Columbus in exchange for Michael Leighton and a 2015 3rd-round pick. The trade turned out to be one of the best moves the Flyers have made in recent memory.
Mason was coming off of a turbulent 4.5 seasons with the Blue Jackets and desperately needed a change of scenery. He was granted his wish and looked like the Steve Mason that won the Calder Trophy and posted ten shutouts in 2009 all of a sudden.
He appeared in seven games for Philadelphia after the trade, going 4-2-0 with a .944 save percentage and 1.90 goals-against average. Mason subsequently signed a one-year deal to stay with the Flyers and become the starter as Ilya Bryzgalov was bought out of his albatross of a contract.
Mason’s 2013-14 season saw him tie his career-high in wins at 33, a feat he hadn’t achieved since his rookie year in 2008-09 with Columbus. Mason’s overall stat line stood at 33-18-17 along with a .917 SV%, 2.50 GAA, and 4 shutouts. Mason’s great season helped the Flyers reach the playoffs and his efforts earned him Vezina Trophy votes for the second time in his career, ultimately finishing seventh in the race.
His 2014-15 season was marred by injuries and a terrible defensive corps in front of him. He would only appear in 51 games and his record sat at 18-18-11, but his peripheral numbers improved drastically to a .928 SV% and 2.25 GAA to go along with three shutouts. His save percentage ranked third in the entire NHL behind Devan Dubnyk’s .929 and Carey Price’s .933, with the latter taking home the Hart Trophy, Ted Lindsay Award, and Vezina Trophy that season.
Mason’s 2015-16 season saw a slight regression but he willed the Flyers into the postseason that year. While only managing a 23-19-10 record, he recorded a .918 SV%, 2.51 GAA., and four shutouts in 54 games played. Mason also started 17 of the Flyers’ final 19 games of the season, which included a run of 12 consecutive games, and he posted a 10-4-3 record along with a .924 SV% and 2.14 GAA to help the Flyers secure the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference.
The 2016-17 season was not only lackluster for Mason but for the Flyers as a whole. They missed the postseason again and Mason’s record stood at 26-21-8 coupled with a .908 SV%, 2.66 GAA, and three shutouts in 58 appearances. Mason was shown the door to free agency at season’s end after the Flyers mistakenly decided to re-sign the inconsistent and often-injured Michal Neuvirth to an extension in February 2017.
Steve Mason’s rankings in Philadelphia Flyers history among goaltenders reads like this: third in games played (231), third in wins (104), second in save percentage, (.918), fourth in GAA (2.47), fourth in total saves (6,047), fifth in shutouts (14). Only Bernie Parent and Ron Hextall spent more time in the Flyers’ crease than Mason and you’d think by how some fans talk about Mason, he’d have the numbers of an AHL goaltender, but he’s been by far Philadelphia’s best goaltender in the last twenty-five years or so.
While Philadelphia did not experience any real sustained success or make any deep playoff runs with him in the net, Mason was still able to play as well as he did. He gave the Flyers the most stable goaltending they’ve had since Hextall’s days in net while he was behind some of the most poorly constructed rosters the franchise has seen in recent history.