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Petr Mrazek’s Road to Becoming the Carolina Hurricanes #1

ByJeb Bohn|
RALEIGH, NC - OCTOBER 29: Petr Mrazek #34 of the Carolina Hurricanes enters the ice during warmups with teammates Dougie Hamilton #19 and Sebastian Aho #20 prior to an NHL game against the Calgary Flames on October 29, 2019 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NC - OCTOBER 29: Petr Mrazek #34 of the Carolina Hurricanes enters the ice during warmups with teammates Dougie Hamilton #19 and Sebastian Aho #20 prior to an NHL game against the Calgary Flames on October 29, 2019 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images)
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Goaltender Petr Mrazek with the Detroit Red Wings
DETROIT, MI – JANUARY 31: Petr Mrazek #34 of the Detroit Red Wings celebrates a 2-1 shootout win while playing the San Jose Sharks at Little Caesars Arena on January 31, 2018, in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit won the game 2-1 in a shootout. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Detroit Red Wings

Mrazek first saw NHL action with the Red Wings late in the 2012-13 season, seeing action in 2 games while spending the rest of the season with Detroit’s AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids.  The following season was much the same with Mrazek getting into 9 games with Detroit.  His stats were good, but he got a little unwanted help in making the jump towards being a full-timer.

On November 5, 2014, Jonas Gustavsson suffered a dislocated shoulder that kept him out until mid-February.  With the door open, Mrazek appeared in 29 games and made a solid impression on the coaching staff and fans alike.  Howard, still Detroit’s top dog, saw the lion’s share of playoff time but Mrazek had made great strides in establishing himself.

The 2015-16 season would be Mrazek’s coming out party as a legitimate NHL goaltender.  With Howard’s play showing a decline, Mrazek saw action in 54 games and put up a career year for the Red Wings.  His stellar play continued in the playoffs, though Detroit’s sputtering offense enabled the Tampa Bay Lightning to dispatch them in a five-game first-round series.

As quickly as Mrazek had risen to the top of Detroit’s goaltending heap, he began to fall back.  Howard had earned more playing time towards the end of the 15-16 season and was named the starter for the playoffs before yielding to his younger counterpart.

Mrazek was the number one heading into the 2016-17 season, playing 50 games, but his numbers suffered across the board.  Behind the scenes were murmurs about attitude issues, a cocky, young goaltender who wanted to be the man in Hockeytown.  Despite the confidence and talent, the writing was on the wall for his time in Detroit and, in the summer of 2017, everything came to a head.

With Las Vegas becoming the home of the NHL’s 31st franchise, the league held an Expansion Draft in June of 2017.  Existing teams could protect one goaltender, making any others up for grabs to the new team.  Even though Mrazek was almost eight years younger than Howard, he was left exposed.

In the end, Vegas didn’t claim Mrazek, and he came into Detroit’s camp to battle for playing time in the 2017-18 season.  He got into 22 games, his goals-against average and save percentage rebounding somewhat.  Nevertheless, Mrazek’s time in Motown was at an end.

Before we move on, let’s take a look at the stats from his time in Detroit:

Regular season (GP; W-L-OT; GAA; SV%; SO)

  • 12-13: 2; 1-1-0; 2.01; .922; 0
  • 13-14: 9; 2-4-0; 1.74; .927; 2
  • 14-15: 29; 16-9-2; 2.38; .918; 3
  • 15-16: 54; 27-16-6; 2.33; .921; 4
  • 16-17: 50; 18-21-9; 3.04; .901; 1
  • 17-18: 22; 8-7-3; 2.89; .910; 3

Playoffs

  • 14-15: 7; 3-4-0; 2.11; .925; 2
  • 15-16: 3; 1-2-0; 1.35; .945; 1
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