Undefeated goalie Carter Hart ‘has been a key’ to the Flyers’ early success

On the Flyers’ road to being a harder team to play against, coach John Tortorella has said he expects mistakes to be made along the way. Each of the team’s four wins has had ugly moments, from turnovers to extended periods in the defensive zone, and the Flyers have yet to win the puck-possession battle in a single contest.

But when your goaltender is playing lights-out, those mistakes become a bit easier to stomach.

Flyers goalie Carter Hart is undefeated in his four starts this season, giving the Flyers chances to win when the competition outplays them. His .949 save percentage ranks second in the league among 28 goalies who have played four or more games and his 1.75 goals-against average is third.

It’s a small sample size, but Hart’s hot start is even more impressive given the inconsistent defense playing in front of him. Hart is facing 34.3 shots per 60 minutes (sixth among goalies) and ranks second in goals saved above average (5.93 per Evolving-Hockey).

» READ MORE: Resiliency on display as the Flyers rebound from their first loss of season with 3-1 win over Predators

“He’s back to his old form, I guess you can call it,” defenseman Tony DeAngelo said. “But it’s up to us to make him confident in us as well. Make sure we’re playing good in front of him. I think we’ve done a decent job of that. But he’s bailed us out a few too many times.”

Even if it’s too early for the statistics to have substantial meaning, Hart is passing the eye test early on.

Once again, the Flyers did not play a flawless 60 minutes against the Nashville Predators on Saturday. But perfection isn’t Tortorella’s expectation — he implores the Flyers to play harder than their opponents and find ways to win. When the momentum started to slip away from the Flyers in the second period while they were up 2-0, Hart stood tall and didn’t give the Predators an inch.

Hart faced nine unanswered shots in a span of 2½ minutes in the middle of the second period, which included a point-blank glove save on center Matt Duchene. The Predators could crack Hart only within the last few minutes of the third period during a 6-on-4 power play with their goalie pulled and the extra attacker on the ice.

“He made some really big saves,” Tortorella said. “He’s been that way from the start, in all his starts. He looks calm. It’s not a lot of extra motion. He’s been a very big reason why we’ve kind of come away with some wins here.”

But as much as Hart has bailed out the Flyers throughout each game, Tortorella also acknowledged that it’s his job, too. And Tortorella will continue to call on Hart to step up as the Flyers learn the right way to play.

“No team wins with average goaltending,” Tortorella said. “For this group here, still trying to figure out how to defend, I think [we’re] improving each whack we have at it. He has been a key, because I think if pucks are going in and you have some struggles with coverages and all that, you’re kind of spinning your wheels.”

With the addition of center Lukáš Sedlák to the Flyers’ fourth line, the Flyers loaned center Jackson Cates to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Cates, 25, played three of the Flyers’ first five games of the season and averaged 8 minutes, 22 seconds of ice time.

Now, Cates will see more ice time and responsibilities while playing in the American Hockey League.

“I don’t have an opinion on him right now, because it’d be unfair for me to give you thoughts, because I just haven’t seen him play enough,” Tortorella said. “But he’ll get a ton of minutes down there. And I think that’s where he needs to be, instead of just playing four, five minutes and then sitting out a game.”

» READ MORE: Flyers embracing the ‘ugly’ as belief in the process continues to grow under John Tortorella

Goalie Felix Sandström (32 saves on 36 shots in one start this season, a 4-3 loss to the Florida Panthers on Wednesday) got the start in net Sunday against the San Jose Sharks. Sandström, 25, made his NHL debut against the Sharks last season, turning aside 43 of 46 shots in the Flyers’ 3-2 overtime loss in San Jose. He is still on the hunt for his first NHL win.