Mrazek happy to join Flyers in trade from Red Wings

PHILADELPHIA --Goaltender Petr Mrazek said it was never fun to play against the Philadelphia Flyers. He's ready to enjoy life on the other side.

Mrazek was traded to the Flyers by the Detroit Red Wings on Monday for a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft and a conditional third-round pick in 2019. He can become a restricted free agent July 1.
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"When [the Red Wings] came to the building, we all know how tough it is to play against [the Flyers]," Mrazek said about Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday. "They have fast forwards, fast defense and a really good power play. This building, it's loud, they have great fans. It was always tough for us to play here. I hope we're going to make that happen to the other teams now."
Mrazek, 26, arrived in time for the morning skate, but will back up Alex Lyon against the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; NBCSP, TSN2, RDS, NHL.TV). He could make his first Flyers start against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday.
The Flyers needed veteran help while Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth recover from injuries. Elliott had surgery to repair a core muscle injury Feb. 13 and is expected to be out 5-6 weeks. Neuvirth will be out 4-6 weeks because of a lower-body injury sustained against the New York Rangers on Sunday.

The Flyers (30-19-10) enter Tuesday third in the Metropolitan Division with 70 points, five behind the first-place Washington Capitals and four behind the second-place Pittsburgh Penguins.
"He's very competitive and wants to win," said Flyers forward Jakub Voracek, who played with Mrazek for the Czech Republic at the World Championship and the World Cup of Hockey 2016. "As long as we find a way to win with him in the net that's all that matters. Hopefully that's what we're going to do."
After playing 11 of the Red Wings' first 40 games, Mrazek played 11 of the past 19, going 5-3-2 with a 2.29 goals-against average and .925 save percentage. He was 3-4-1 with a 3.64 GAA and .892 save percentage in his first 11 games.
"The last two months were better for our team in Detroit," said Mrazek, who was 72-58-20 with a 2.60 GAA and .912 save percentage in six seasons with Detroit. "I got to play more, had the chance to play more minutes. … I didn't play much the first half of the season and I think it was tough for me to find a game when I played once in two weeks, once in three weeks. I think it was tough.
"During that stretch, I worked hard on the ice and tried to improve my game, and I think in the last two months the game was in the right direction."