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Michal Neuvirth's injury puts Flyers in a bind

The Flyers' playoff chances look a lot more precarious than they did a few days ago - and not just because they were manhandled Saturday by Pittsburgh in a critical matchup.

Flyers goalie Michal Neuvirth.
Flyers goalie Michal Neuvirth.Read more(Yong Kim/Staff Photographer)

The Flyers' playoff chances look a lot more precarious than they did a few days ago - and not just because they were manhandled Saturday by Pittsburgh in a critical matchup.

That 4-1 home loss certainly hurt, but the news Sunday that Michal Neuvirth will miss the rest of the regular season could be devastating.

Neuvirth, who is having a career season, will be sidelined for three weeks with a lower body injury, thought to be to his knee. The team does not disclose injuries.

Suddenly, the Flyers' difficult schedule got much more daunting and Steve Mason's workload just got a lot heavier.

"I'm going to do everything I can to give the team as much goaltending as they need," Mason said after an optional practice Sunday in Voorhees. "Obviously this is an extremely crucial point in the season for us - this road trip in particular - and myself, along with everybody, we have to be sharp."

The Flyers, who start a four-game road trip against the Islanders on Monday, are three points behind Detroit, the team they are chasing for the final wild-card spot. They have two games in hand on the Red Wings with 12 games remaining.

Eight of those games will be played on consecutive nights. Perhaps worse, they end the season with four games in five nights.

"We haven't been really blessed with an easy schedule to finish off, but we're not going to use that as an excuse," Mason said. "We're going to come here ready to have a strong final push in the last few weeks of the season. It's tough with the back-to-backs, but you just have to take care of yourself and get your rest."

Mason said he is preparing to play as many of those games as possible. Anthony Stolarz, who was recalled from the Phantoms on Sunday, has lots of promise but has never played in an NHL game. No one knows if he can withstand the pressure of a playoff race if he gets a few starts, as expected.

Playing four sets of back-to-back games didn't seem like such a recipe for disaster last week after the Flyers, behind Neuvirth's brilliant goaltending, jolted the Blackhawks in Chicago, 3-2, and climbed into a playoff spot for the first time since before Halloween.

Ah, but that was then.

This is now: The Red Wings, who don't want to be the franchise's first team in a quarter-century not to make the playoffs, have climbed ahead of the Flyers with consecutive wins, and the Orange and Black's terrific goaltending duo no longer exists.

The Flyers' four sets of consecutive games - starting with Monday and Tuesday road matchups with the Islanders and Columbus, - always looked challenging. But because the Flyers had two quality goalies worthy of being No. 1, those back-to-backs seemed less imposing. Dave Hakstol would have had the luxury of alternating the goaltenders and always using someone who was fresh.

Now he will rely primarily on Mason, who would be well-served - and preserved - if the Flyers can duplicate a recent stretch in which they allowed fewer than 20 shots in three consecutive games.

"We gave up few shots because the guys were playing so well and the guys were just swarming and not giving the opposition many opportunities to create," Mason said. "Ideally, I think that's the kind of hockey we want to play. Unfortunately, we got away from it [against Pittsburgh] and we paid the price for it. We've got extremely good tests coming up here these next seven days, and we've got to have a great effort from everyone."

On the positive side, Mason has not been overworked this season because Neuvirth has played a good portion of games. He says he feels fresh and ready for this challenge.

"I'm preparing myself like I normally would. I'm not going to change anything," Mason said.

Hakstol acknowledged that losing Neuvirth was a setback, "but regardless of our situation, our team has handled it well."

The Flyers have survived injuries or illnesses to Claude Giroux, Jake Voracek, Sean Couturier, Michael Del Zotto, Mark Streit, and both goalies, among others, and stayed in the thick of the playoff race.

The latest injury, however, could be the most difficult to overcome.

scarchidi@phillynews.com

@BroadStBull