Insider: Flyers DID Want Carter Hart Back

Carter Hart, Vegas Golden Knights goaltender, waves to crowd after being names one of the stars of the game

We heard back in September from GM Danny Briere that goaltender Carter Hart would not be returning to the Philadelphia Flyers once he was eligible to return to the NHL as of this week. Now it's been revealed that it was strictly Hart's idea, and not necessarily the Flyers' preference.

Hart wound up signing with the Vegas Golden Knights and made a triumphant return to the NHL Tuesday night (despite surrendering a goal less than two minutes in), backstopping the Knights to a 4-3 overtime win.

Insider Frank Seravalli said the following on Franky Hockey today on Victory+ :

In the end, he decided to go and play for a team where he had a chance to win. The Flyers actually wanted to have him back, I believe.

Talk first began to circulate about Hart's potential return to the NHL after his acquittal in a London, Ont. courtroom. He was charged as part of the alleged sexual assault case for him and four other Team Canada players from the 2018 World Junior Hockey Championship.

Flyers said Hart wanted a 'fresh start', but insider says they wanted him back

At that time, in mid-September, just before training camp, Flyers general manager Danny Briere said that Hart's agent told the team that the goalie had ruled out signing back with Philly, because he wanted a fresh start.

"The only comment I'll make on that is that his representative, Judd Moldaver, has reached out and kind of told us that in light of everything that happened in the last year and a half with Carter, they felt, and Carter felt, that it was better for them to look for a fresh start," Briere said. "That's where it's at and it's the only comment I'm going to make on that."

From what Seravalli reported, however, if Hart's camp had not come to them and said they wanted a new start elsewhere, it sounds possible that the Flyers would have tried to re-sign him. They non-tendered Hart after the 2023-24 season, making him an unrestricted free agent. He went on leave mid-season that year with the charges against him soon to be revealed.

Hart was considered the Flyers' goalie of the future before those developments, and had a .906 save percentage across six seasons, with a 2.94 goals against average. The Flyers came into the season with goaltending as one of their biggest question marks, but newly-acquired Dan Vladar has actually far exceeded expectations.

As for Hart, he's got that new lease on life now in Vegas, and got off on the right foot, stopping 27 of 30 shots, including three saves on 3 ‘high danger’ shots faced, plus six huge saves in overtime. He also stopped three of the four shootout attempts he faced. It was his first game, and first win, back in the NHL in nearly two calendar years.