TORONTO — The numbers are staggering, even for something that is considered to be a crapshoot.
In hopes of finding the next Ron Hextall — or, at the very least, another Roman Cechmanek — the Philadelphia Flyers have selected 21 goalies in the last 15 NHL drafts. So far, only three have appeared in an NHL game.
Joacim Eriksson, a seventh-round pick in 2008, gave up six goals in 36 minutes with the Canucks before getting pulled in his lone start. Jeremy Duchesne (fourth round, 2005) allowed one goal in his 17 minutes of fame. And Martin Houle’s cup of coffee was more like a two-minute sip, during which the eighth-rounder in 2004 made two saves and gave up a goal.