Philadelphia Flyers Acquire Veteran Goaltender Brian Boucher


Christopher Szagola-USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia Flyers have wasted no time in making moves since the NHL and the NHLPA agreed to a memorandum of understanding. Flyers insider Anthony SanFilippo has reported that the Flyers have acquired goalie Brian Boucher and prospect Mark Alt for minor leaguer Luke Pither.

Alt, a 6-4 Defenseman and second round pick of the Hurricanes in 2010 is currently in his third season with the University of Minnesota.

But Boucher is certainly no stranger to Philadelphia. He was the Flyers first round pick in the 1995 draft, and has had multiple stints with the club (97-02, 07, 09-10). In 2011, Boucher signed a two-year deal worth $950,000 per year with the Carolina Hurricanesbut played in just 10 contests last year as a shoulder injury landed him on the Injured Reserve. It’s hard to argue that Boucher was missed by the team too much, as he obtained a 3.40 GAA, an atrocious save percentage of .881%, and posted a record of 1-6-1.

“Boosh” has also spent the lockout training at the Flyers Skate Zone in Voorhees, where the Flyers will be holding training camp. It’s possible he be at camp as early as Monday.

The trade, although rather questionable, once again places doubt over Michael Leighton‘s future with the Flyers organization. A cult hero during the Flyers ’09-’10 Stanley Cup run, Leighton was signed to a one-year, one-way contract with Philadelphia worth $900,000. He spent the previous season with the Adirondack Phantoms of the AHL, posting a 28-26-1 record in 56 games with a GAA of 2.58.

The move certainly isn’t about money, as both have reasonable cap hits. It’s likely that Boucher was brought in to push Leighton through training camp, but will be sent down to the Phantoms for at least the time being. Boucher’s deal signed in the 2011 offseason was a two-way deal, and would have a cap hit of $950,000 in the minors as well.

As the season is almost ready to get underway, the Flyers backup goalie situation will be a situation worth watching.

Jake Pavorsky is a contributor for Rant Sports. You can follow him on Twitter @JakePavorsky.

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