The Flyers didn't waste any time locking up Samuel Ersson for the next three seasons.
The club signed the goaltending prospect to a two-year, $2.9 million contract extension Saturday. The deal has an average annual value of $1.45 million and doesn't kick in until next season (2024-25). This season, Ersson will be on the final year of his three-year entry-level contract. He'll remain a restricted free agent at the end of his new deal following the 2025-26 campaign.
In 2023-24, Ersson will battle with Cal Petersen and Felix Sandstrom for playing time as the Flyers' backup to Carter Hart. The 28-year-old Petersen came to the Flyers during June in the Ivan Provorov trade. Ersson turns 24 years old in the opening month of the season and will be the go-to guy with AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley if he's not in Philadelphia.
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Signing Ersson now potentially gives the Flyers a lower AAV for a goalie that perhaps could be rising. You never quite know how things will unfold in net. If Ersson plays a lot with the Flyers this season and does well, his value would only go up.
The 2018 fifth-round draft pick arrived to the Flyers in December last season and opened eyes. Over separate stints with the big club, he got off to a 6-0-0 start while recording a 2.56 goals-against average and .913 save percentage. He finished the season 6-3-0 with a 3.07 goals-against average, an .899 save percentage and one shutout.
In the AHL last season, he led the Phantoms to the playoffs with 24 wins, a 2.84 goals-against average and .900 save percentage.
NHL
The Flyers like the potential in what they have organizationally behind Hart, who turns only 25 next Sunday. Hart is entering the final year of a three-year, $11.937 million contract ($3.979 million AAV). He'll still be a restricted free agent when the deal expires after this season. There was moderate trade buzz around Hart earlier this offseason as the rebuilding Flyers put everything on the table.
Ersson and Aleksei Kolosov headline the Flyers' prospect picture in net. The team signed the 21-year-old Kolosov to his three-year entry-level contract last month. The 2021 third-round draft pick will remain in the KHL this season.
The Flyers also drafted goalies Carson Bjarnason in the second round during June and Egor Zavragin in the third.
"It's pretty exciting what's going on and what's coming up," Flyers general manager Danny Briere said before the draft. "Not just with the Flyers, but the farm system, too. We have some good goalies coming up, guys that could turn out to be high end.
"I don't think in the past that has always been a strength of the Flyers, so it's exciting knowing that we have some prospects that could develop into really high-end goaltenders."
The Flyers still have the NHL rights to goalie Ivan Fedotov. Pursuant to the CBA, his one-year entry-level contract was tolled in June and would remain in effect for 2023-24. However, it's looking more and more likely that Fedotov will be staying in Russia with the KHL's CSKA Moscow after signing a two-year deal last month. Time will tell if the Flyers receive any word on that changing.
The 26-year-old did not play hockey last season because of required service to the Russian military. At this point, it's uncertain if he'll ever play in North America.
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