Photo Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Samuel Ersson struggled early in the season with momentum saves, that would eventually turn the page on the game in the Flyers favor. He has been a stone wall for the most part, with some recent struggles right before the break. Ersson has been pretty impressive with his rebound control, and he has made timely saves most notably against the Florida Panthers this past Tuesday night. He moves laterally from post to post well, and has donned a new goalie mask in the same token this season.
Ersson has been spectacular for the Flyers between the pipes after the first month of the season. He’s making timely saves after being peppered trying to keep his team in it early, and also key saves in big moments to keep the Flyers engines going. Ersson continues to receive praise from Danny Briere and John Tortorella alike, even Briere saying that he was capable of being a number one netminder.
“Erss was great, especially in that first period,” Joel Farabee said at the conclusion of the Florida Panthers game
“Erss gives us a chance in the first period to get our legs going,” Flyers’ Head Coach John Tortorella said after defeating the Panthers on Tuesday night
Well before the break, Ersson was on fire for about ten games, but the last few games leading into the All-Star break he had little help in front of him. For the season, Ersson is 13-9-3 with a 2.53 GAA, and a .900 Save Percentage. Ersson time and time again gets the job done, “He just continues to get better, making key saves at key times. Goaltending has been good, it’s given us a chance every night for a while here. He came up with the extra save, and we found a way to get two points,” said John Tortorella earlier in the season.
The accolades are starting to come in, as Ersson was voted as one of the top goaltenders of the week by the NHL earlier this season, and then he made the All-Rookie All-Star team, as voted by nhl.com before he All-Star Game.
“He’s a number one, I believe that,” Briere said of Ersson last week at his mid-season presser. “At the same time we have to be careful. You don’t want to put too much pressure on him. He’s still young. He’s still developing and acquiring experience. This is a great opportunity for him to shoulder a lot of heavy load. We will see, but I do believe so.”
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