Less than halfway through the two-year extension he signed last winter, veteran goalie Petr Mrazek has been thoroughly written out of the Blackhawks’ plans.
The Hawks will roll with a two-goalie rotation of Spencer Knight and Arvid Soderblom for the rest of the season, interim coach Arvid Soderblom said Wednesday. Knight is scheduled to start Friday against Utah, and Soderblom will presumably start Saturday at the Predators.
Goalie coach Jimmy Waite added Thursday he expects the remaining games to be divided roughly 50/50 between Knight and Soderblom, as long as they both play well.
That’s the right decision from a long-term perspective. Knight, 23, and Soderblom, 25, are important building blocks for the organization moving forward. Mrazek, 33, is not.
It’s also a smart decision based on each goalie’s performance this season. Knight’s save percentage is .912 — and he stopped 41 of 42 shots in his sparkling Hawks debut Monday — while Soderblom’s is .904 and Mrazek’s is .890. Knight’s plus-6.5 GSAA ranks 15th out of 64 goalies league-wide, Soderblom’s plus-3.0 GSAA ranks 25th and Mrazek’s minus-10.8 GSAA ranks 61st.
However, this creates an unfortunate and unpleasant situation for Mrazek, who has battled gamely through two and a half years of constant losing in Chicago to get to this point.
Mrazek has been a source of joy and levity throughout his tenure, and for long stretches, he has also provided solid goaltending. Last season, he posted a .907 save percentage and plus-6.7 GSAA in a career-high 56 games played.
He addressed the situation after practice Thursday with his usual levity and maturity.
“‘Sodie’ and Spencer are young guys, and they have their whole careers in front of them,” Mrazek said. “I’m going to be here to support them. I’m going to be happy around them [to] make sure they feel comfortable.
“I’ve been in way worse situations in my career. I’m a positive person. It’s still a great [place] to be around. The job we have, we have to enjoy it. And I believe when people are positive, good things will happen. [I’m] definitely not in a bad mood or anything.”
Mrazek talked to general manager Kyle Davidson earlier this week. Both parties are hoping they can figure out a trade before the deadline Friday afternoon, although Mrazek’s $4.25 million salary-cap hit and the Hawks’ lack of available retention slots will make that difficult and therefore unlikely.
“He’s such a good pro,” Waite said. “He never [complains] about anything. … If anybody would take that [news] the right way, that’s him. Hopefully we can find him a good home so he can go play somewhere. That would be great for him. He deserves it. Don’t forget he was our best player last year.”
The Panthers briefly needed a new backup goalie after trading Knight to the Hawks, but they filled that hole by acquiring Vitek Vanecek from the Sharks on Wednesday. The Kings are another team that might add goalie depth due to backup David Rittich’s struggles.
Other conceivable landing spots for Mrazek include the Canucks (if injury-prone Thatcher Demko isn’t trending toward returning soon) or the Flames (if they trade current backup Dan Vladar).
But it’s more likely than not Mrazek remains stuck on the Hawks for the final six weeks of the season, sitting around while awaiting a summer trade or buyout. He admitted Thursday he is “mentally tired.”
“It’s a business,” Mrazek added. “This is what it is — that’s what happens in hockey. I’m still going to be here, coming in with a great attitude. What happens in the summer…or in the next two days, we’ll see.”
