Mason Expected to Take Reduced Role with Atlanta

In what likely means the end of Johan Hedberg’s chances of resigning with the Thrashers, Atlanta GM Rick Dudley locked up Chris Mason for two years at $1.85-million per.  Mason capped off his second straight winning season with a 30-22-8 record and 2.53 GAA and finds himself in a familiar role – trying to bring a fringe playoff team to the postseason.

However, with Ondrej Pavelec waiting in the wings, it’s difficult to believe that Chris Mason is the clear number one goaltender in Atlanta so expect fewer starts than his career-high 61 in 2009-10.  Pavelec started 40 games last season and posted a 14-18-7 record with a 3.29 GAA.  That said, Mason can still be a productive fantasy option, like Hedberg proved to be last season – Mason’s most productive seasons actually came when he started fewer games.