Hart sixth goalie to start for Flyers, NHL record for first 35 games

VOORHEES, N.J. -- Carter Hart, the Philadelphia Flyers' top prospect, will be the sixth goalie to start a game for them this season when they play the Detroit Red Wings at Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; TVAS, NBCSP, FS-D, NHL.TV).

Hart, 20, was recalled from Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League on Monday.
The Flyers (12-15-4) will be the first team in NHL history to start six goalies in the first 35 games of a season and the 14th team to start at least six at any point in a season, the first since the Buffalo Sabres and Edmonton Oilers in 2013-14.
Hart said he learned he was getting called up during Lehigh Valley's Christmas party on Sunday.
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"It's something I've dreamt of as a kid," he said. "I've always wanted to be an NHL hockey player since I was 4 years old, since I started playing hockey. When I got the call last night, I was really excited and kind of shaking with enthusiasm a little bit."
After a bumpy start, Hart, selected by the Flyers in the second round (No. 48) in the 2016 NHL Draft, said he feels more comfortable with the professional game. He's 5-2-0 with a 2.46 goals-against average and .922 save percentage in his past seven games.
He credits the improvement to better practice habits and less thinking about what he needed to do.
"I think just trusting my game, not trying to overthink plays," he said. "Earlier in the year, making the transition from juniors to the pro level, I was over-analyzing things. I had talks with the coaches down there, my goalie coaches back home. I've just got to trust my game, have to play to my strengths and when it's game time it's time to play. You can't think, you just have to play."
Hart had a 1.87 GAA and .922 save percentage in four preseason games with Philadelphia and left an impression on his new teammates.
"He had a strong camp, he looked good in camp, played well for us," defenseman Andrew MacDonald said. "All I know is he's played really well of late, done some good things. He's a big part of this team's future."

Hart is joining a team that is last in the Metropolitan Division, eight points behind the third-place Pittsburgh Penguins, and will have a new coach, Scott Gordon, who was promoted from Lehigh Valley on Monday when Dave Hakstol was fired.
"Probably not the ideal time to give Carter a game but Carter's playing really well," general manager Chuck Fletcher said. "He's a professional hockey player, strong kid mentally. He'll go in and give his best. I have no worries about Carter Hart long term. He's going to be a really good goalie for this franchise."
Finding consistency in goal has been a season-long issue for the Flyers.
Hart and Michal Neuvirth practiced Monday. Neuvirth had been away from the team since Thursday to be with his wife for the birth of the couple's second child. Injuries have limited him to two games this season.
Brian Elliott, expected to be the starter, has been out since Nov. 15 because of a lower-body injury. He had been with the Flyers during their recent five-game road trip but returned to Philadelphia on Thursday for a medical evaluation. Elliott skated after practice with goalie coach Kim Dillabaugh but will be out until at least Jan. 1.
"Brian has been making some progress but probably not as much progress as we'd all like," Fletcher said. "He's going to ... have his film reviewed in a couple different ways. We're having conversations on what's the approach going forward. We're still very confident we'll get him back to a place where he can play."

Anthony Stolarz was placed on injured reserve Monday and is expected to miss 2-4 weeks with a lower-body injury sustained during the first period of a 5-1 loss to the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena on Saturday. Alex Lyon, who replaced Stolarz, was sent to the AHL on Monday.
Elliott's 13 starts leads the Flyers; second is Calvin Pickard with eight, but he was lost to the Arizona Coyotes on waivers on Nov. 29.