Back with the Flyers, rookie goalie Samuel Ersson could get a start during this road trip

SEATTLE — Seattle is a long way from Allentown compared to the likes of Hershey and Wilkes-Barre.

Goalie Samuel Ersson is well-acquainted with the latter two towns, spending the last four weeks living the bus travel life with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. He appeared in eight AHL games during that stint, five of which came against the Hershey Bears and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Now, Ersson is exploring the big city of Seattle for the first time in his 23 years after the Flyers called him up on Monday ahead of their four-game road trip.

“For me, being in [my] first year [in the NHL] and seeing all the big cities, it’s kind of like a mini vacation when you go on the road,” said Ersson, who hails from Falun, Sweden. “It’s exciting. You try to take some time to just have a look around.”

But nothing is more exciting than being back up in the NHL, where Ersson has shown an aptitude for the higher-caliber competition. In his last opportunity with the Flyers from Dec. 23 to Jan. 17, Ersson went 5-0-0 in his starts, posting a .918 save percentage and a 2.37 goals against average overall. He was called up then with backup Felix Sandström working his way back from an illness and starter Carter Hart rebounding from a concussion.

This time around, however, Ersson isn’t back on the basis of injury — both Hart and Sandström are healthy. Rather, Ersson “deserves to be here,” according to coach John Tortorella. In his last eight starts with the Phantoms, Ersson had a .915 save percentage and a 2.28 goals against average (6-2-0). He also earned his first career AHL shutout against the Bridgeport Islanders on Saturday when he made 15 saves.

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With the Flyers set to play four games in six days starting Thursday against the Seattle Kraken, including back-to-back games against the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers on Monday and Tuesday, Tortorella is leaving the window open to give Ersson another chance in net.

“If I don’t play Carter, he’ll play,” Tortorella said. “That’s certainly not a criticism of [Sandström]. I just think Ersson’s played better. We’ve been able to, with our roster and all that, get him here. We’re going to carry three [goalies]. How long that goes on? What goes on next with that? Chuck [Fletcher] and I haven’t really discussed that. But when I decide Carter needs a break, Erss will get the game.”

Ersson is just a season removed from a year of misfortune, marked by a groin injury that limited him to five games with the Phantoms. But after an offseason to get stronger, Ersson is thriving in his first full North American season, posting a .911 save percentage and a 2.58 goals against average in 26 games with Lehigh Valley.

He’s also proving that he can keep up with the pace of the North American schedule. Back home, where he played for Brynäs IF of the Swedish Hockey League, the team played just 52 games all season. As much as he’s enjoying exploring big cities like Seattle with his “friend group” of Swedish teammates Sandström and Olle Lycksell, he’s happy to be healthy and performing at a high level.

“It’s been a really fun season and exciting to be back playing,” Ersson said. “I’ve missed it.”

The Flyers have struggled offensively in their last four games since the All-Star break, averaging 1.50 goals. But All-Star Kevin Hayes has chipped in with a pair of goals, bringing his scoring total this season to 47 points (17 goals, 30 assists), two points shy of tying winger Travis Konecny for the team high. Hayes is the only player on the Flyers to score multiple goals in the last four games.

The lines have fluctuated throughout the week, but regardless of which players he is on the ice with, Hayes is committed to playing his game and creating offensively.

“I’m a true believer that everyone in the league brings something, including myself,” Hayes said. “No matter who you’re playing with, you have to have a good attitude and a good effort and hopefully success comes from that.”

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Hayes called the Flyers’ last game against the Kraken “probably our worst game that we’ve played all year structure-wise.” The Kraken had 56 shot attempts to the Flyers’ 32, dominating the puck-possession game for the majority of the game, according to Natural Stat Trick.

At practice on Wednesday, Hayes skated on the second line with center Noah Cates and right winger Owen Tippett. Together, if that line sticks, they’ll look to help the Flyers rebound on Thursday against the Kraken and get back to the scoring ways they established in January when the team averaged 3.14 goals per game for the month.

The Flyers held a practice at Climate Pledge Arena on Wednesday ahead of their game against the Kraken on Thursday night. Everyone participated except for center Patrick Brown, who is dealing with an illness. His status for Thursday was not known.