Flyers History: Parent’s Outrageous Workload, Expectations for Carter Hart
By Colin Newby
The Flyers will enter the 2021-22 season counting on Carter Hart as their top goaltender.
All eyes will be on Hart to rebound from a tumultuous 2020-21 season, in which he finished with the worst single-season save percentage (SV%) among regular NHL goaltenders since the 2009-10 season.
However, it’s important to consider that the role of a “number one” NHL goaltender has changed over the course of time. Bill Meltzer, on the team’s official website, estimated that 52 starts would be a reasonable expectation for Hart this season, while also acknowledging factors of performance and/or injury that could skew the number. That number would leave a critical role for backup Martin Jones as the presumed starter for 30 games.
The evolution of the goaltending workload can be no better exemplified than by the greatest goaltender in Flyers history, Bernie Parent, during his spectacular 1973-74 season.
Flyers Ride Bernie Parent to First Stanley Cup
Only the Lord saved more than Bernie Parent in 1973-74 during Philadelphia’s quest to their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. The Vezina Trophy winner set single-season NHL records for wins with 47 and games played with 73.
Only Braden Holtby (2015-16) and Martin Brodeur (2006-07) have recorded more wins in a single season since.
Parent 1.89 goals against average (GAA) and .932 SV% helped him to second place in Hart Trophy voting, a rare feat for a goalie. Only Tony Esposito (1969-70) and Dominik Hašek (1997-98) have recorded more than Parent’s 12 shutouts in one season since the NHL expansion era began in 1967.
The Canadian netminder started an additional 17 playoff games and earned his first of two consecutive Conn Smythe Trophies in a Cup victory.
Flyers Expectations for Carter Hart
Parent played in about 89% of his team’s regular season games in 1973-74. Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets led NHL goaltenders in games played by appearing in roughly 79% of his team’s games during the shortened 2020-21 season.
If Hart starts 50 games in 2021-22, it will account for just over 60% of the first 82-game schedule since the 2018-19 season.
The league will take a three-week hiatus in February for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. The break forces a condensed NHL schedule, which proved to be a disadvantage for Hart and former backup Brian Elliot last season.
The physical strain that the schedule has on goaltenders will be weighted as heavily as ever this season coming off of two consecutive shortened seasons that have affected conditioning.
Head coach Alain Vigneault will need to consider these factors as much as any NHL coach given the lack of extended experience for his 23-year-old netminder.
NHL Goaltenders Might Never Again Match Parent
Parent played in a different NHL era, and the contrasting expectations set for Hart are a reflection of the time lapse more so than any other factor.
The expectations the Flyers set for Hart will be based on their judgments of proper workload for modern NHL goalies and the best interest of the team short-term and long-term.
Barring another disastrous season, Hart will be expected to start every game of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs if the Flyers qualify. If he is half effective as Parent, a light regular season workload will benefit everyone involved.
If he helps the team produce the same result as Parent’s team did, he will be celebrated perhaps as much as any player in franchise history.