Most teams around the league carry two, maybe three goalies to be a backup to their starter. The Philadelphia Flyers, however, are different from most. The Flyers have an abundance of goalies. They currently have four goalies on their roster – that’s right, four. A lot of teams have utilized three goalies to provide extra rest for their starter, but not many have jumped on the bandwagon of four.
Flyers Abundance of Goalies
The Flyers have four goalies on their roster – Carter Hart, Samuel Ersson, Calvin Petersen, and Felix Sandstrom. These four netkeepers will be a major part of Philadelphia’s success on the ice this year. By the looks of it, Hart and Petersen will be in Philly all year while Ersson and Sandstrom might be starting out in Allentown playing for the Phantoms. All four are still on the Flyers roster.
The Four Goalies
Hart played in 55 games in the 2022-2023 campaign where he went 22-23. He had a .907 save percentage (.904 was league average in 2022-2023) and tallied 1,510 total saves on the year. He is going into the last season of his three-year $12 million contract extension he is currently on. This is an important year for him and the team as they are seemingly in a current rebuild. Hart is entering his prime years and if he wants more out of his career, he will most likely be gone after free agency next year.
Ersson had a nice stretch last year with a total record of 6-3. Although he didn’t get a ton of action on the ice, fans were surely impressed by the nice rhythm he had during the back stretch of last season. He has a chance to see the NHL again this season.
Petersen has spent most of his career bouncing back and forth from AHL to NHL. When he was traded from the Los Angeles Kings fans thought Hart was bound to get traded. But it seems he has been more of a veteran presence behind the net and in the locker room for Hart to learn from. If Hart does leave after this season, they will have a seasoned vet that is still in line to be behind the net.
Sandstrom started as the primary backup this past season where he held a 3-12 record; he was eventually moved down later in the season. He was drafted back in 2015 by the Flyers and has been with the organization ever since. Don’t be surprised if he’s in the mix at some point this year.
Positives
There are benefits of having four goalies on the roster. Last season a lot of teams implemented three goalies to give their starter more rest. With four goalies that is certainly a way to get Hart more rest throughout the year if he needs it. It also bodes well for injuries. The Flyers have been an injury prone team, so if one or even two of the netkeepers fall to an injury, there will still be viable options to put in. All four goalies are on the younger side and can also help and learn off of one another.
Negatives
This can also cause problems within a team. Having four goalies can cause competition and even pressure within a position group. With Hart’s possible exit looming after this season, he could be on a short string. Since the rebuild is in place, if Hart doesn’t play up to expectations, John Tortorella can easily replace him to give another netkeeper a shot and see what he brings to the table.
This also questions the other three goalies’ contracts. Will they do enough to get an extension at some point? Can they do enough to stay in the NHL for longer this season than fans think? Will any of them crack the starting lineup? It unloads tons of questions that cannot be answered. We’ll have to wait and see what they bring to the ice this year for the Flyers.
Main Photo Credit: Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports
