The Flyers finally snapped their five-game losing streak, beating the Lightning in the shootout Thursday night.
VOORHEES, N.J. — The goaltending situation in Philadelphia has been far from unassailable.
The Flyers parted ways with Carter Hart last summer because of the Hockey Canada sexual assault case. They lost their No. 1 goaltender in January last season, when he requested and was granted an indefinite leave of absence.
Since 2021, they've drafted three goalies in the third round or higher. In John Tortorella's three-year tenure as head coach, they've played six goalies.
So it's probably stating the obvious that the Flyers don't feel like they have the position figured out in their rebuild. They're still learning about Samuel Ersson, who had to suddenly take over the No. 1 duties with Hart's exit.
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"Sam has been thrusted into a spot that I just think it has been unfair for him," Tortorella said Saturday morning ahead of his team's game against the Hurricanes (7 p.m. ET/NBCSP). "This organization was set back when things changed with our goaltending situation, especially Sam, not allowing him to develop. So he has been force-fed a little bit here."
Ersson has had an up-and-down season that started with nagging lower-body issues. He went on an excellent run from Christmas to around the end of February, putting up an 11-4-1 mark, a 2.23 goals-against average and .919 save percentage. Since then, he has gone 1-2-1 with a 4.47 goals-against average and an .826 save percentage.
On the season, the 25-year-old is 19-12-4 with a 2.96 goals-against average and an .888 save percentage.
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"I think with Sam, as we move forward, we're hoping it's going to be a tandem," Tortorella said. "We're not going to ask Sam to play 55, 60 games if he's the guy. I think it's going to be a tandem. We're still evaluating. He has been inconsistent. Sometimes you watch him play and you think he has got it but then he falls off.
"It happens to a lot of goalies, that's why some goalies just don't play and are out of the National Hockey League. So we continue to evaluate and we're going to continue to do the same thing these last 15 games or so."
The Flyers entered Saturday last in the NHL with an .875 save percentage. They've allowed 26.8 shots per game. Only six teams have allowed fewer and they're all in playoff position: the Hurricanes, Kings, Avalanche, Golden Knights, Devils and Panthers.
It's also fair to note the Flyers have not given their netminders consistent goal support. Over their last 20 games, the Flyers have scored just 2.20 goals per game.
"It's a constant team evaluation as we go through it," Tortorella said. "I'm certainly not laying everything at the doorstep, but it's the most important position in the game as far as winning and losing and giving your team a chance to win."
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