If there’s one thing we’ve learned through Carter Hart’s previous Pro Reads, it’s that the young Philadelphia Flyers star can be his own worst critic when he’s reviewing video.

Hart offered up some self-criticism (and a good explanation of counter-rotation that will become relevant again during this breakdown) at the end of a four-sequence backdoor save off New York Rangers star Artemi Panarin in his Pro Reads debut, and continued that critical tone with a second entry, a backdoor save off the rush against Florida Panthers forward Evgenii Dadonov that ended with him spread out a little more than he’d prefer. Hart was hard on himself in his fourth Pro Read, which featured an odd-man rush and one timer against the Colorado Avalanche, all part of his seemingly constant desire to find improvement.

It continues here in his fifth entry breaking down footage of slap pass through a multi-layered screen to a wide-open Washington Capitals forward in the slot. Forget the degree of difficulty, Hart is always looking for things he could have done better. See if you agree.

​The Sequence

This is actually an in-zone sequence that turns into a point-blank rush style chance for Capitals forward Brendan Leipsic after a well-executed slap pass by defenseman Radko Gudas, who played with Hart in Philadelphia when he first arrived in the NHL in 2018-19. It’s a heck of a fake and pass, one Hart jokes is especially unexpected because it comes off he stick of Gudas, who is better known for his big hits and sturdy defensive play than slick offensive plays.

Gudas certainly had the Flyers players committed to his fake shot, as they dropped down to block it, taking away Hart’s eyes as the puck moved across to Leipsic cutting into the slot.

Take a look at this Freeze Frame just before that pass arrives and ask yourself what factors would determine how you come across on this play: Are you sliding?

As you can see from the photo above, Hart has done a nice job of holding his edges despite a fake from Gudas that was good enough to get the shot-blocking forward to his knees. It’s the kind of patience we normally applaud, so what didn’t Hart like about how he played this?

The Save

Watch the entire save now and see if you can spot the same room for improvement Hart did?

From our seat, it was still pretty hard to see what Hart didn’t like about his play here?

What do you think? Hart does drop briefly as he comes across but immediately regains his edges before Leipsic can shoot and stays up with the left pad through the glove save.

Watching it at full speed, what factors do you see when reading this play that you think allows him to get back up to his skates before the shot? Hart may be his own toughest critic at times, but there were elements he liked while re-watching this; what do you think they might be?

The Pro-Read

Now, let’s hear from Hart himself, both the good and bad, and see if it matches your opinion.

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