Sam Ersson, Cam York power Flyers to 1-0 win against Red Wings, extending point streak

There may have been some clock issues at Wells Fargo Center on Saturday night, but the time finally came for the Flyers to get some puck luck.

They got that for the lone goal of the game, along with another stellar game between the pipes by Sam Ersson, in a 1-0 win against the Detroit Red Wings.

“I feel like we’re a team that can win 6-5, or like tonight, 1-0. That’s something that’s really important to be able to do, and I think that’s something that we didn’t do great last year and that we’re doing really good this year,” said Cam York, who scored the only goal. “So, if we can continue to do that we’re going to have a lot more success.”

It was the eighth time in the past 15 games that the Flyers got on the score sheet in the first period. The Flyers are now 15-1-0 when scoring first, 11-2-0 when leading after the first period. They extended their point streak to eight games (6-0-2).

Ersson did not have a great October. He’ll straight up tell you that.

But since the calendar flipped to November, the Swede has been stellar in net.

The 24-year-old goalie, who went 0-1-1 with a 5.91 goals-against average and .760 save percentage in October, entered Saturday night’s game against the Red Wings with a 6-2-1 record in his last nine games. He complimented that with a 2.10 GAA — third-best in the NHL among goalies who made at least seven starts during that span — and a .913 save percentage. His November run, which included a 25-save shutout against the New York Islanders in a 1-0 shootout win, earned him a stick tap from the NHL as a Rookie of the Month honorable mention.

“Remember how he started? It was tough sledding for him for a bit therem and he readily admitted it; that’s what I like about Sam,” Flyers coach John Tortorella said. “I remember listening to him when he had some struggles and he knew that he needed to be better. He knew he was better. ... This was probably one of his best games, so he’s improved on through here.”

» READ MORE: Flyers’ Carter Hart now has answers to illness that has ‘been going on for a while’

And now he has his second shutout of the season, and the third of his NHL career. Ersson made 33 saves, including four in the last 2 minutes and 18 seconds, one of which was on Patrick Kane. Ersson also had two shots blocked by his teammates in that span, who blocked 21 total in the game.

“We care about each other in the room and care about each other’s success as a group, but also as individuals,” Ersson said about his teammates stepping up in the waning moments. “I appreciate it so much, it was a special game for me. [This week] was the first time my family got to see me play in the NHL. So it was definitely huge to get the shutout.”

Ersson, who grew up in Falun, Sweden, had his parents, Hans and Lena, and his girlfriend, Olivia, in attendance. They were also at the game on Thursday, when he earned a 4-3 shootout win against the Washington Capitals. He is the youngest of five, and his siblings, brothers Marcus and Axel, and sisters Lisbet and Kerstein, are also coming in the next few days, as the family plans spend Christmas together in New York.

According to Natural Stat Trick, Ersson faced seven high-danger shots as his teammates kept the puck to the outside and didn’t let the Red Wings get much action in front of the net. Tortorella was impressed postgame with how his team defended the middle of the ice, checked well, and, when needed, Ersson settled the team down.

One of his best saves was a sliding stop on Jake Walman from the left face-off circle off a cross-ice pass from J.T. Compher just 31 seconds into the second period. He then made a big left pad save on Joe Veleno with under five minutes to go.

“He played unbelievable for us,” York said. “Played with him in Lehigh for a little bit there, and saw what he can really do, and he’s doing the same thing up here. If he continues to play like that, we’re going to win a lot of hockey games.”

» READ MORE: Flyers top prospect Cutter Gauthier named to USA Hockey’s roster for World Juniors

Although it seemed that the ice was tilted evenly at times, the Flyers seemed to be getting the better scoring chances as they put 33 shots on goal. And in the first period, they connected just 6 minutes and 21 seconds into the game.

Off an offensive zone face-off win, Travis Konecny dropped the puck for York as the blueliner skated down the left boards. York tried to find Sean Couturier on the right post but the puck instead went off the stick of Compher into the net to give the defenseman his fifth of the year.

“That was a play that we talked about before the game,” York said about the assist from Konecny. “Right before the faceoff, talked about it, and just had good execution.”

Tortorella said he thought that York used his legs more on Saturday. The young blueliner had another chance in the first period as he skated around the defense, but couldn’t bury the puck. Konecny, who got his 200th career assist on York’s goal, also tried to make a power move in the game. He skated down the right side on a cold Ville Husso, but was stopped with 7:32 left in the second period.

Those were just some of the plays that showcased a hard-fought, grinding, transition game by the Flyers. After a slow start in Thursday’s win — the first game back home after a three-game roadie — the Flyers needed to come out firing. They put 12 shots on Alex Lyon in the first period, including the lone goal by York, and three more on the Red Wings goalie before he left in the second period with an injury.

And the Flyers didn’t let up. The Orange and Black put seven more on Husso in the middle frame and 11 in the third period.

» READ MORE: Flyers’ Travis Sanheim out against Detroit Red Wings due to illness

Travis Sanheim was a late scratch due to illness. The defenseman, who missed just one game last year as a healthy scratch in Calgary, and two games the season prior, missed his first of the season. ... Marc Staal, who was supposed to be a healthy scratch, ended up playing, pairing with Egor Zamula. Rasmus Ristolainen played with Cam York. .... Ryan Poehling moved up and centered Cam Atkinson and Joel Farabee. Scott Laughton centered the fourth line. ... Red Wing Robby Fabbri left late in the third period bloodied after a hit by Ristolainen. ... Sean Couturier blocked a slap shot by Jeff Petry early in the third period that appeared to sting quite a bit. He seemed to be in pain on the bench but didn’t miss much time on the ice. “He’s missed too much hockey,” Tortorella said. “He doesn’t want to miss a shift. He’s a pro. ... Doesn’t say a lot but when he does speak on the bench, people listen. He has slowly improved in the subtle plays that he makes. First I was a little worried as he started the season, but as I watch him more and more, I understand him better as a player.”

The Flyers return to game action on Tuesday in the Garden State. They’ll head up I-95 to the Prudential Center to take on the New Jersey Devils (7 p.m. on NBCSP).