Michael Leighton may not be dueling with Sergei Bobrovsky and Ilya Bryzgalov for the starting goaltender position of the Philadelphia Flyer any time soon, but he returns to Philadelphia nonetheless on Friday for the “AHL Outdoor Classic” between the Adirondack Phantoms and the Hershey Bears at Citizens Bank Park.
The last time Leighton was in Philly, he was entering Game Five of the Stanley Cup Quarterfinals against the Buffalo Sabres in relief for Brian Boucher after “Boosh” let in three first period goals. Leighton started Game 6, only to be pulled after letting in some backbreaking goals himself.
While he may not have received the full opportunity he was hoping for when he signed a two year, $3.1 million contract with the Flyers, his experience in net has been helpful for the organization at the AHL level. His 11-11-0 record may be middle-of-the-pack, but the main reason the Phantoms are struggling right now is a lack of goal scoring. His 2.44 goals-against-average (GAA) and 0.920 save percentage (SPT) rank him 16th in the AHL.
His play has not gone unnoticed. Leighton was named to the 2012 Eastern Conference team at the AHL All Star Game, taking place in Atlantic City at the end of the month. Leighton is the only All Star with Stanley Cup Final experience.
Jason Bacashihua, signed to a one-year, two-way contract last summer, has played decently as Leighton’s back-up (2.84 GAA and 0.914 SPT). He is not currently listed among the top goalies in the AHL because he has not played 660 minutes, but his stats would rank him 33rd.
There were questions last summer why ‘Cash was signed, considering the Phantoms still had Swedish goaltender Johan Backlund on the books. Backlund, 30, followed a respectable “rookie” season in 2009-10 with an injury-raddled year that he would have sooner liked to forget. He made his NHL debut in 2009 against the Pittsburgh Penguins (when Peter Laviolette had zero faith in Boosh) and played for 40 minutes before injuring his groin.
He became injured again following training camp this summer, but since his return to the Phantoms he has only played in one game (played in relief where he made all 15 saves).
Tim McManus of the Post Star reported on twitter tonight that Backlund is no longer with the Phantoms, stating “Goaltender Johan Backlund has apparently struck an agreement to play elsewhere. He left the Phantoms following the game.” He did not know what team Backlund will be playing for. He also did not say whether Backlund is just being loaned to another team (his contract still being on the books) or if he will be subject to unconditional waivers for not reporting to the Phantoms (at which point the Flyers can buy him out).
It’s a shame that Backlund could never overcome injuries at the right time, or else he may have been able to fight Bobrovsky for the back-up position last season. That’s professional hockey, though, and the potential removal of his contract would open another spot for the Flyers to make a trade later this year.
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