What options do the Flyers have to backup Sam Ersson?

The Flyers had a very strong one-two goaltending punch in Carter Hart and Sam Ersson for the better part of four months this season. Ersson played so well during the stretch of November through January that he challenged Hart for the number one spot in the depth chart. In fact, John Tortorella began using “1A/1B” to describe the tandem. It’s rather significant because when Ersson struggled out of the gate in October, Tortorella made it very clear that Hart was the starter, and Ersson would have to find his rhythm in limited appearances.

“I don’t see Sam supplanting Hartsy as our number one guy,” Tortorella said . “He is going to be our backup goalie, so he’s got to figure it out.”

Obviously at the time, Tortorella was right, but things changed. Hart’s injury in early November and extended battle with an undisclosed illness opened the door for Ersson to earn additional starts, and he took full advantage. When Hart took his indefinite leave of absence, the transition to Ersson as No. 1 was inevitable, and Cal Petersen was brought up from Lehigh Valley to provide backup duties.

The “next man up” cliché doesn’t often apply to the goaltender position. Teams find replacements, sure, but it’s typically a much tougher blow to absorb than losing a forward or defenseman. And so, it’s astounding then that the Flyers could suddenly and, at first, inexplicably lose their number one netminder and barely notice his absence.

That largely remained the case until Cal Petersen delivered a stinker for the ages in a seven goals against performance versus the Pittsburgh Penguins. It was especially disappointing because Petersen had a decent start and victory earlier in February when the Flyers faced the Seattle Kraken. He wasn’t stellar by any means – 17 saves on 19 shots – but he didn’t have to be. What you want out of a third string goaltender is to make the must-have saves, keep your team in the game, and not be the reason for a loss.

Unfortunately for Petersen, he did none of that on Sunday afternoon. He was beaten early and often, giving up three unscreened short side goals in the process. The worst of which came via newly acquired Penguins center, Emil Bemstrom, who received the puck down low and skated it over to Petersen\'s blocker side. Cam York arrived in time to partially disrupt the shot, but Petersen allowed the puck to bounce off his stick and go over his right shoulder for a goal.

https://twitter.com/penguins/status/1761878729091936560?s=20

The Flyers responded well despite several backbreaking goals against, overcoming deficits of both 2-1 and 4-2, but Petersen\'s untimely mishaps proved too difficult to overcome. For a team in the midst of a playoff run, especially against a divisional opponent chasing them in the standings, that just can\'t happen.

It begs the question if management will look elsewhere for a solution in net. They have a busy schedule in March, and Ersson can\'t be expected to every night. So, what options are at their disposal?

Ride with Cal Petersen

This feels like the most likely scenario, at least in the very short interim. The Flyers may give Petersen another look in net before opting to go in another direction. It feels risky given the importance of every point at this stage of the season, but a second awful performance would probably not be tolerated.

Petersen is 2-2-0 in four starts with a .864 save percentage and 3.90 goals against average.

Call up Felix Sandstrom

Remember that the Flyers had three goalies on the active roster to start the season, with Sandstrom as third string. It was a unique situation because Sandstrom was not waiver exempt and could\'ve been lost to a claim had he been sent down. Ultimately, he did eventually get waived without a claim and has been playing for the Phantoms since.

He hasn\'t impressed at the AHL level. Despite a decent record of 11-6-2, Sandstrom\'s numbers have been abysmal (.882 SV% & 3.23 GAA). Petersen\'s stats were mostly the same, so it was a bit of an eyebrow raiser when he got the call-up over Sandstrom. Not exactly a vote of confidence, but it\'s one he hasn\'t earned.

Still, the backup situation feels dire. When asked if they\'d consider given Sandstrom another look, Tortorella didn\'t rule it out .

\"Those are discussions we\'re going to have. We\'re down to short strokes here so I\'m not sure where it all goes, but [we\'re] certainly discussing what our options are. I\'m going to have play our backup goalie probably four, maybe five 5 games here; so we\'re going to have discussions as we move forward.\"

For his career in the NHL, Sandstrom is 3-16-4 with a .887 save percentage and 3.62 goals against average.

Bring Belarusian prospect Alexei Kolosov over

Currently playing for Dinamo Minsk in the Kontinental Hockey League, Kolosov was selected by Philadelphia in the third round (78th overall) of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. Minsk did qualify for the KHL playoffs this season, so the Flyers will have to wait until that tournament wraps up or Minsk is eliminated, whichever comes sooner.

Management is quite high on Kolosov, and they have good reason to be. Now in his fourth season in the KHL, the 22-year-old posted a 22-21-0 record (.907 SV% & 2.39 GAA).

Keith Jones hinted recently that Kolosov may be here sooner than later.

\"We have… a lot of Russian goaltenders in the pipeline. I\'m looking forward to watching those guys perform over here when they arrive, and some will be here sooner than later. I think that\'s a big part of our future, there\'s no question about it.\"

However, the transition from the KHL to the North American game is not an easy one, and it\'s tough to envision the Flyers throwing him straight into the deep end. If he comes over, Kolosov would likely start in Lehigh Valley with the Phantoms to get his feet wet and prove he can adapt there first. Should he succeed and the situation at backup does not improve, it\'s possible we could see him in an orange jersey quicker than anticipated.

Waiver wire

With Joseph Woll recently returning to the Toronto Maple Leafs after a three month stint on injured reserve, the Leafs are now carrying three goalies. There\'s been some speculation that Martin Jones could be waived to make room.

Should that occur, the Flyers would be remiss not to take a hard look. Jones has done well as backup for the Leafs and would be an immediate improvement over the options they currently have. A reunion makes sense too, given his history with the organization.

Trade

Can\'t see this one happening. The Flyers have been exorbitantly clear that they are selling and will not part with assets for short-term gains. It\'s possible they could be tempted for a 6th or 7th round pick, but a move of that nature would directly contradict management\'s grand plan.

Statistics via Hockey Reference and theahl.com .

The Andrew MacDonald

The Meat (Matt) Read ($20 Sale Price)

The Eric Lindros

The Danny Syvret - Ad Free

What options do the Flyers have to backup Sam Ersson?

Talking Points