Jordan Hall and Joe Fordyce discuss the Flyers placing backup goaltender Cal Petersen on waivers and the team’s next option in net.
A backup goalie change appeared possible Tuesday when John Tortorella addressed the position at morning skate.
"Certainly discussing what our options are," the Flyers' head coach said. "I'm going to have to play our backup goalie probably four, maybe five games here. So we're going to have discussions as we move forward."
Those discussions were apparently had as the Flyers placed Cal Petersen on waivers Wednesday. The move opens the door for Felix Sandstrom to get a crack as Samuel Ersson's backup.
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Petersen was in net last Sunday for the Flyers' 7-6 loss to the Penguins. He was making just his second start with the big club in 106 days. Two days before, Tortorella admitted that Petersen was in "a tough spot" this season, playing mostly for AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley and very little as the Flyers' No. 2 netminder.
"I just didn't feel that Cal was good enough the last game," Tortorella said Thursday after practice. "There hasn't been a big discrepancy down there with Sandy and Cal. It's not criticizing Cal, but we have probably four or five left that I think we'll use the backup. Sandy deserves a chance, too.
"I don't think our team played great in Pittsburgh. I don't think Cal played that well. So Sandy gets a chance now. The next time we want to use our backup, Sandy will get that game and then we'll make a call from there."
After a couple of starts during November, Petersen rejoined the Flyers in January as Carter Hart requested a personal leave because of a sexual assault case.
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Through five games (four starts) for the Flyers, Petersen has gone 2-2-0 with a 3.90 goals-against average and an .864 save percentage.
The 29-year-old cleared waivers Thursday and was loaned to the Phantoms. Petersen came to the Flyers last summer in the three-team Ivan Provorov trade. He's under contract for the rest of this season and next at a $5 million cap hit.
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Sandstrom, called up Thursday with Ronnie Attard, is a 27-year-old who has been in the club's system since 2015. Flyers goaltending coach Kim Dillabaugh has a lot of familiarity with the third-round draft pick and many players on the club's roster have played in front of Sandstrom, either in the NHL or AHL.
For Lehigh Valley this season, the 6-foot-2, 196-pounder has gone 11-6-2 with a 3.23 goals-against average and an .882 save percentage. In 25 career NHL games, Sandstrom is 3-16-4 with a 3.62 goals-against average and an .887 save percentage.
At 31-22-7, the Flyers are in third place of the Metropolitan Division and entered Wednesday with a 65.1 percent chance to make the playoffs, according to Hockey-Reference.com's probabilities report.
The Flyers open a busy March on Friday when they visit the Capitals (7 p.m. ET/NBCSP). They have 15 games in March, including two back-to-back sets, one being this weekend.
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