PHILADELPHIA — It would have been easy for the Flyers and their fans to question whether goalie Steve Mason was ready when Rangers center Dominic Moore scored on him just 4:38 into Game 4 of their first-round series Friday night at Wells Fargo Center.
Mason, after all, had not played in two weeks because of a concussion, missing the first three games of the series. He also had not played in a playoff game since 2009 and — oh, yes — had never won a playoff game.
But there were signs Mason’s teammates saw in the time leading up to Friday night’s 2-1 Flyers win over the Rangers that told them their goaltender was going to be just fine.
The first came when Flyers forward Scott Hartnell found himself angry at Mason during Friday’s morning skate because he could not get a shot past him.
“He stoned me a couple times and I was [ticked] off,’’ Hartnell joked. “But that’s what you need your goalie to do — make some big saves.’’
So, hours later, that’s exactly what Mason did, stopping 37 of 38 shots to win his first playoff game and send the Flyers to the Garden for Game 5 at noon Sunday with buoyed confidence riding the coattails of a hot goaltender — something every NHL team craves in the postseason.
“He won the game for us,’’ said Flyers forward Matt Read, who scored the game-tying goal at 8:55 of the first period. “He stood on his head [Friday] night and made some big saves for us. He put the team on his shoulders.’’
Mason said: “It was a lot of fun to get back out there in this kind of atmosphere,’’ which he called “second to none as far as I’m concerned.’’
With the Flyers reeling from a dispiriting 4-1 home loss in Game 3 Tuesday night, Mason represented a lifeline of sorts to them. The Flyers entered the game knowing its chances of winning this series would be slim if they went back to New York for Game 4 down 3-1.
While Mason compiled an impressive 33-18-7 record in the regular season, his 0-4 playoff record and 4.14 goals against average raised questions about how he might handle the pressure.
Those questions were answered pretty quickly by Mason, now 3-1 against the Rangers this season.
Mason said the Rangers’ early onslaught actually worked to his advantage, even though he allowed the early goal to Moore.
“To be able to get into the game right off the bat after I hadn’t played in almost two weeks, it was good to feel the puck right away, make some saves and gain some confidence to carry forward the rest of the way,’’ Mason said. “I did not put any extra pressure on myself. It’s playoff time. It’s fun to be a part of this.” If you treat it as a fun situation you’re giving yourself a better opportunity to have success.
“I’ve waited a long time for this,’’ he said of the first career playoff win after entering the game 0-4. “But one win doesn’t do very much in the long run.’’
Mason’s best save of night came on a hard Ryan McDonagh slap shot in the waning seconds of the second period when he just got his stick on it.
“It was a tough play,’’ Mason said. “He was coming in slow, I bit early, he made a move to the middle and I was able to reach back and grab it with the paddle of the stick. It was a big save.’’
It was one of many Mason made as he looked better in one game than his backup, Ray Emery, looked at any point in the first three games.
“He was our best player tonight,’’ Flyers forward Jakub Voracek said, “and that’s exactly what we needed.’’