The Philadelphia Flyers would not have gone as far as they had in the Stanley Cup Playoffs without goalie Dan Vladar. Goaltending has sunk the Flyers in recent years, but last offseason, they made the right choice in signing Vladar to a two-year contract. Had it not been for Vladar's heroics, they may not have been able to get past the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first-round. That's why it sounds like Vladar will be given a contract extension this offseason.
During the first-round, it was well known that Vladar was banged up after a collision from Penguins forward Bryan Rust. Yet, he still played through the injury, playing a total of seven games after the fact. As it turns out, the injury was much more serious than it appeared.
The Athletic's Kevin Kurz published an article about some of the things he's hearing about the Flyers this offseason. While writing about Vladar's contract negotiations with the Flyers, Kurz brings up that Vladar's injury was so severe, that had it happened during the regular season, he would have missed time.
Dan Vladar played through serious injury throughout playoffs
"How bad was the still-undisclosed injury? According to a league source, it was serious enough that, had it occurred in the regular season, Vladar might have been out of action," writes Kurz. "A Flyers source indicated that team personnel were only told Vladar could play through the injury. The Flyers did not include Vladar on the injury list they provided after the season."
Kurz says that Vladar still has to do some rehab on the undisclosed injury, and that it doesn't appear that he needs to get surgery.
NHL fans know how "insane" hockey players are when it comes to playing through injuries. They are willing to do whatever it takes to make sure they can still play for their team in their quest to win the Stanley Cup. For Vladar, even though he was dealing with a serious, undisclosed injury, it wasn't enough to keep him sidelined.
Let's take a look at how Vladar performed in the succeeding games after the injury:
- First Round Game 4 vs. Penguins: 18 saves on 21 shots in 4-2 loss
- First Round Game 5 at Penguins: 18 saves on 21 shots in 3-2 loss
- First Round Game 6 vs. Penguins: 42 saves on 42 shots in 1-0 overtime win
- Second Round Game 1 at Hurricanes: 20 saves on 23 shots in 3-0 loss
- Second Round Game 2 at Hurricanes: 39 saves on 42 shots in 3-2 overtime loss
- Second Round Game 3 vs. Hurricanes: 27 saves on 31 shots in 4-1 loss
- Second Round Game 4 vs. Hurricanes: 37 saves on 40 shots in 3-2 overtime loss
So, while playing through the injury, Vladar has a 2.70 goals allowed average and a .914 save percentage in those seven games. That's not bad considering the circumstances.
This offseason, general manager Danny Briere let it be known that signing Vladar to a contract extension was his top priority. Recent reporting from Sportsnet NHL insider Elliotte Friedman indicates that the team and Vladar already have something worked out, but can't officially announce it until July 1, the first day of free agency.
Once the contract is signed, sealed, and delivered, the next thing for Flyers fans to keep an eye on is wwhether Vladar will be healthy and good to go for the start of training camp. Based on Kurz's reporting, it doesn't seem like Vladar should need any procedure, so that will be worth monitoring in the coming weeks.
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