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Carolina Hurricanes: The Rise, Fall, & Redemption of Petr Mrazek

By Christopher Highe

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA - APRIL 15: Petr Mrazek #34 of the Carolina Hurricanes watches the action against the Washington Capitals during the third period in Game Three of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at PNC Arena on April 15, 2019 in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hurricanes won 5-0. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA - APRIL 15: Petr Mrazek #34 of the Carolina Hurricanes watches the action against the Washington Capitals during the third period in Game Three of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at PNC Arena on April 15, 2019 in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hurricanes won 5-0. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /
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RALEIGH, NC – FEBRUARY 2: Petr Mrzek #34 of the Detroit Red Wings skates toward the bench during a time out of an NHL game against the Carolina Hurricanes on February 2, 2018 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NC – FEBRUARY 2: Petr Mrzek #34 of the Detroit Red Wings skates toward the bench during a time out of an NHL game against the Carolina Hurricanes on February 2, 2018 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Career best, and worst

Starting with the 2014-15 season, the Red Wings began seeing more of Petr in the net as both the Wings’ starting and backup goaltenders were plagued with injuries during the season. He would continue to show his talent during this time period, going 16-9-2 with 26 starts in 29 games. With a goals-against average of 2.38 and a .918 SV%, Petr was on track to go full-time in Detroit’s net.

The 2015-16 season saw Petr on the full-time roster for Detroit, along with Jimmy Howard. Petr would take on the starting role for this season, playing in 54 games with 49 starts. Of those 49 starts, Hockey-Reference.com lists him with 31 quality starts (a .633%). It would be his last good career year in Detroit, with a 2.33 GAA and .921 SV%.

The 2016-17 season is when things began to unravel for Mrazek. He was still Detroit’s starting goaltender, appearing in 50 games in the season, and starting 44 of them. Of those games, Petr only registered 18 wins, a single shutout, a 3.04 GAA, and a .901 SV%. 19 of those 44 starts are listed as quality starts, showing a very sudden slide in performance from the previous season.

With his sudden downturn, Petr is relegated to the backup role, with Jimmy Howard taking over the starting role for 2017-18. He suits up for 22 games, starting 18 of them, and goes 8-7-3 with 3 shutouts. A 2.89 GAA and .910 SV%, with 7 quality starts shows he’s on the uptick again. However, Detroit trades Mrazek to Philadelphia in February in return for two conditional draft picks.

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