NHL
Alex Lyon signed a two-year contract with the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, avoiding salary arbitration. The 25-year-old goaltender was a restricted free agent at the end of the 2017-18 season. Dave Isaac reported Lyon’s two-way contract is worth $750,000 per year at the NHL level. It becomes a one-way contract during the second year.
Last Season
Lyon joined the Flyers after the midseason mark, making his debut against the Washington Capitals on Jan. 31. His first win came on Feb. 18 against the New York Rangers, allowing just one goal on 26 shots. Lyon posted a .905 save percentage and 2.75 goals against average in his 11 games with the organization. He supported the team when Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth were dealing with injuries.
His stint with the Flyers ended and he returned to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on April 13. He was critical to the Phantom’s success during the Calder Cup series against the Charlotte Checkers. Lyon blocked 94 of 95 shots during Game 4 of the Atlantic Division finals. The game was the longest in AHL history with five overtimes and a total of 146:48 played.
Alex Lyon made 94 saves in tonight's @LVPhantoms win.
NINETY-FOUR SAVES.
Take a bow, ?. #LVvsCHA pic.twitter.com/jTcUJRAF3K— AHL (@TheAHL) May 10, 2018
This Season
Goalie depth isn’t a problem for the Flyers. Lyon will likely be the starter for the Phantoms during the 2018-19 season. With Elliott and Neuvirth still under contract for a year, he will be called up should the need arise. The Flyers qualified Anthony Stolarz and are expected to sign him. On top of that, Carter Hart’s professional contract kicks in this year.
“I’d rather have too many goalies than too few,” said Flyers general manager Ron Hextall. “All of a sudden, a couple goalies go down and you’re scrambling for goalies. If we start with five, we start with five. Not a perfect situation, but again, I’d rather start with five than with three.”
Hextall chose not to push for another goaltender during the initial free agency scramble with five already accessible. Petr Mrazek was brought in to bolster the team during the playoff push and was not offered a new contract when he became an unrestricted free agent. Signing Lyon means that Hextall has faith in the depth he has.
