It’s another playoff series involving the Philadelphia Flyers and the Pittsburgh Penguins. We’re still not sure when it will start. What’s clear is the old boring narrative about the Flyers having goaltending issues when it counts should at least be put on the back burner to start. When “The Great One” mentions Flyers starter Dan Vladar as a possible nominee for the Hart Trophy, you know it’s been a good year for Philadelphia goaltending.
A lot can happen in a seven-game series, leading some goaltenders that are stellar through the regular season to simply fall apart in the playoffs (hello Connor Hellebuyck). A bad goal is often a no-no when goals are at a premium and the games are so important (sorry Mr. Mason, but this was bad).
The important thing is obviously, not to allow a bad goal. But if you do, the next best thing is to be mentally tough enough to put it behind you and move on. A goalie lacking confidence is death in the playoffs. And this year, Dan Vladar was more than capable of limiting those miscues, and wiping the slate clean following shots that leaked through.
Having said all that, the Flyers will need Vladar to be stellar to stop the Penguins. But before diving deep into what Vladar needs, let’s look at the Penguins goaltending situation and the Flyers. And what both starters (and backups) bring to the table.
Starters
Dan Vladar
The Flyers weren’t sure what Dan Vladar was going to bring to the table when they signed him last July to a two-year contract. The bar was so terribly low when it came to the goaltending (or consistently lack thereof) that anything was seen to be an improvement. Or at least hope something could change for the better. Vladar came into training camp with the mindset he would give Sam Ersson a run for his money. He did that and so much more, helping to lead the Flyers to the playoffs.
The numbers are ridiculously good compared to what constituted goaltending last year in Philadelphia . Vladar got the majority of the starts outside of being injured in January against Buffalo, and he delivered much more than anticipated. More importantly, Vladar is a goaltender who is as vocal as any other leader or “letter guy” as head coach Rick Tocchet said. He’s not in his own little world. He is part cheerleader, part taskmaster but above all a solid goaltender for Philadelphia this season.
The only snag might be how he has next to no playoff experience in his career. Both games he appeared in he came in relief. He was not the go-to guy like he will be called upon to be now. That might bring some added pressure to him. But, if anything, Vladar and the Flyers have been playing quasi-playoff hockey since the Olympic break.
The pressure grew with each win, knowing a sprint that came up just short wouldn’t be much of a moral victory. And Vladar was able to not just survive but thrive under that microscope, especially in a city that has seen its share of poor goaltending performances over the years. The playoffs will be a slightly different animal, and facing Sidney Crosby and his veteran (geriatric?) crew in the first round is a tall order for a keeper making his first National Hockey League playoff start this weekend. On paper, he might have seemed like a long shot to do anything important for Philadelphia this year. But he has been everything and then some, seemingly giving the Flyers an advantage in the starter’s role.
Stuart Skinner
What a season it has been for Skinner. And not necessarily in a good way. Skinner began the year with the hopes of helping Edmonton get to a third consecutive Stanley Cup final, only this time coming out on top at the end. But after seeing his save percentage and overall play take a step back even from last season, Skinner was dealt to Pittsburgh. The Penguins gave up Tristan Jarry in exchange, and from the looks of it, neither goalie has been able to be the starter for their respective clubs. Since arriving in Pittsburgh, he’s played more, but his stats haven’t gotten better. His save percentage in Edmonton was .891 whereas with the Penguins it was .885. And his goals-against average ballooned a bit, from 2.83 with the Oilers to 2.99 with Pittsburgh.
Skinner has much more playoff experience than Vladar with 50 appearances the last three years. So he has that wisdom to fall back on if times get tough. The problem is the goaltender hasn’t looked remotely the same since 2023-24, with a lot of less than great starts and far more questionable or soft goals than he’d care to remember. After all, had he been stopping the puck consistently, would the Oilers have traded him away for Jarry?
The hope, at least in Pittsburgh’s eyes, is Skinner catches lightning in a bottle and stymies the Flyers, then finds that mojo again and leads the Penguins far deeper than expected. Thus far, it hasn’t worked to perfection. The goaltender lost four of his last five starts, with two of those four defeats clunkers (.810 save percentage versus St. Louis in a 7-5 loss, and .844 against Tampa on April 2).
So it’s not like he’s coming in hot. The Penguins are hoping, like most of their lineup, that Skinner can rekindle past glories in the coming days. The sample size thus far isn’t great, and shouldn’t instill a lot of confidence.
Statistics for Vladar and Skinner
| 2025-26 Statistics | Dan Vladar | Stuart Skinner (with Penguins) |
| Game starts | 51 | 27 |
| Wins | 29 | 12 |
| Losses | 14 | 9 |
| Overtime/Shootout losses | 7 | 5 |
| Shots against | 1283 | 697 |
| Save percentage | .906 | .885 |
| Goals-against average | 2.42 | 2.99 |
| Quality starts | 37 | 15 |
| Quality start percentage | .725 | .556 |
| Really bad starts | 10 | 8 |
| Goals saved above average | 13.0 | -7.2 |
Backups
Sam Ersson
Sam Ersson thought he had the starter’s job heading into training camp. He was the best of a bad bunch last season, but that’s not saying much. Ersson slowly realized he was still relied on when it came to back-to-back situations and just giving Vladar a break from time to time. But on the whole he was the backup this year, one who dazzled at times in the shootouts and overtime to secure that extra point in the standings. And at times looked like the problematic Ersson who hasn’t really put it all together. If the Flyers need Ersson to do anything outside of possibly appear in garbage time in a blowout to give Vladar a rest, then Philadelphia should be very concerned. Not that Ersson couldn’t have a good game or two. It just seems beyond the realm of possibility that would transpire.
The goaltender looked slightly more capable this season despite some stats and metrics being worse than last year. However, Ersson was the beneficiary of a very tight, goaltender-friendly defensive system that Tocchet and his assistants implemented from the start. So even if Ersson was leaky (and he was at times), he was also able to put some starts together that made him look competent. The biggest difference between Philadelphia’s situation and Pittsburgh’s in goal this year is the Flyers have a crystal clear starter and a backup. The Penguins don’t have that luxury, as both Skinner and Arturs Silovs haven’t established themselves as the starter for Pittsburgh.
Ideally, Ersson doesn’t see much if any action, barring a ridiculous scheduling fiasco which sees the Flyers playing back-to-back games this series due to rink availability. He’s looked better under Tocchet’s structure and framework, but that doesn’t infuse a lot of people with confidence should he be between the pipes at any point this round. Or any round. A prime example of that was against Montreal in the last regular season game. He nearly stopped the shot, but it got by him for Montreal’s second goal of the night. Philadelphia can’t afford leaky goals at any point moving forward. Hence Ersson should be comfy in his Flyers baseball cap and watching the proceedings from the bench.
Arturs Silovs
Silovs, like Skinner, isn’t considered the backup as the Penguins are still searching for someone to stop the puck nine times out of 10 that it approaches them. So Silovs could be called on to help Pittsburgh in this round. The goalie’s lone game against Philadelphia this season was a good one for him, stopping 32 of 34 shots before losing in overtime. On home ice he can also be a bit hit-and-miss, with a 3.33 goals-against average and .880 save percentage. And in the last five games (three of which were wins), Silovs had a save percentage under .850 three times. Of course, the Penguins won two of those games 8-3 and 9-4, so conceding that many goals will be overshadowed by that amount of firepower.
Silovs hasn’t been playing stellar and only had four starts in April. If Philadelphia can somehow get to Skinner (assuming he gets the start in the series opener), then Silovs shouldn’t be seen as a better option, just basically more of the inconsistent same. A consistent offensive attack from the Flyers should have the Penguins with few options to stop the bleeding. That should make things much more favorable for Philadelphia. And make Vladar’s life a little less busy.
Statistics for Ersson and Silovs
| 2025-25 Statistics | Sam Ersson | Arturs Silovs |
| Game starts | 29 | 39 |
| Wins | 14 | 19 |
| Losses | 11 | 12 |
| Overtime/Shootout losses | 5 | 8 |
| Shots against | 744 | 1020 |
| Save percentage | .870 | .887 |
| Goals-against average | 3.12 | 3.07 |
| Quality starts | 12 | 18 |
| Quality starts percentage | .414 | .474 |
| Really bad starts | 10 | 12 |
| Goals saved above average | -19.3 | -8.5 |
In the end
It might be evident by now, but it appears that Vladar — at least on paper — is the best of the four goaltenders mentioned above. He has more quality starts than both Skinner and Silovs, and he has a 20.2 and 21.5 goals saved above average differential over the respective duo. Of course, both Penguins keepers have an advantage in that metric (and some others) over Sam Ersson. But in the end, the Flyers might have a distinct advantage between the pipes when it comes to this series.
That’s not to say Vladar won’t be put to the test, especially against a team that is not looking at next season but this series to prolong whatever nostalgia the glory years the Penguin cornerstones provided to fans. Philadelphia will need Vladar to stand tall in this series if the Flyers have any hope at making it a series and an upset. Should the Flyers youth start peppering the Pittsburgh goalies like Tyson Foerster, Porter Martone, Matvei Michkov and Trevor Zegras can, it might make things a bit easier for Vladar.
The lone enigma might be the experience factor, as Skinner can either rely on past ups and downs and roll with the punches better. Vladar needs to have a short memory if he allows a leaky goal. Any crack in his confidence won’t be an asset for Philadelphia in this round. A focused, cool, and calm Vladar will be a huge turning point in this series in the Flyers’ favor.
Stats courtesy of ESPN.com and Hockey-Reference.com
