Two of the Flyers’ top players are expected to miss some time.
Friday morning, the Flyers announced star goaltender Carter Hart and No. 1 center Sean Couturier are both day-to-day with a mid-body and lower-body injury, respectively, after Wednesday night’s 5-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres at Wells Fargo Center.
Hart was injured at the 14:36 mark of the first period when he extended his right leg to make a pad save. He initially stayed in the game, but exited after allowing a Brandon Biro goal at the period’s midway point.
Couturier’s injury is more of a mystery. He saw 18:34 of ice time Wednesday night and did not appear to be hampered by any identifiable ailments.
At this time, it is unclear if Couturier’s injury is related to his back, which required a pair of surgeries to repair and forced him to miss over a year-and-a-half of action.
Couturier has put together a solid start to the season despite coming off such a lengthy absence. He’s logged a pair of goals and eight points through 10 games and continues to serve as a stabilizing two-way presence down the middle of the ice.
The Flyers are suffering a massive blow with Hart on the mend. After winning three of their first four games, the Flyers have since lost five of their last six, and it was Hart’s play that helped keep them competitive against some of the NHL’s stronger clubs. The 25-year-old has been excellent to start the campaign, logging a .913 save percentage and 2.52 goals against average in eight starts.
Ersson figures to be next in line to take over as the Flyers’ No. 1 goalie with Hart out of commission. The 24-year-old’s start to the season has been rough, allowing 14 goals on 59 shots in three appearances. He was very good in 12 games last season, though, winning each of his first six decisions as an NHLer, including a shutout against the Sabres.
With third goalie Felix Sandstrom having been reassigned to AHL for a conditioning stint, Cal Petersen will serve as the Flyers’ temporary backup goalie. He was recalled from Lehigh Valley on Thursday.
Acquired from the Los Angeles Kings in the three-team Ivan Provorov trade in June, Petersen has been largely disappointing to start the season. He’s logged just one victory in his four starts, along with a .884 save percentage and 3.76 goals against average.
Once considered the heir apparent to Jonathan Quick in Los Angeles, Petersen is now the Flyers’ Plan D in net — quite a fall from grace after signing a three-year, $15 million contract extension with the Kings in 2021.
Ersson is expected to man the crease Friday night against the Sabres in Buffalo. The puck drops at 7 p.m. ET.
