PHILADELPHIA – Steve Mason has had a difficult season going 2-5-2 coming into Saturday’s game with the Minnesota Wild.
In the dying moments of the game, with the Flyers clinging to a one-goal lead, Mason stoned Eric Staal to preserve the 3-2 win.
“There’s been some big saves throughout the year; they just haven’t come frequently or at the most opportune times,” Mason said.
Mason did not get the start but was pressed into action after Michal Neuvirth went out with an injury in the second period; he made 19 saves.
WATCH: All Wild vs. Flyers highlights
No details were provided on the injury.
“[Mason] has to come in and he makes some stellar saves, especially at the end there,” Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds said. “… Pretty much won the game for us. We just tried to battle in front of him.”
Brayden Schenn scored the game-winner in the third and Brandon Manning and Michael Del Zotto also scored for the Flyers.
“We’ve got to take the second game and apply it to the first game,” Wayne Simmonds said. “You can’t get overly crazy about [Friday]. It wasn’t positive, wasn’t the greatest, but we had another game today, come back and be mentally tough, and I thought we were mentally tough.”
Nino Niederreiter and Mikael Granlund were the Wild goal scorers.
“Tonight, we’d go in [on the forecheck], and we’d be one and done because there’s only one guy going,” Wild head coach Bruce Boudreau said. “If you’re not tenacious enough, bad things happen.”
Devan Dubnyk took the loss on 33 saves.
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