Ottawa Senators made their bet on Samuel Ersson. Now they need a payoff

The spotlight has turned to Samuel Ersson.

With Linus Ullmark on the injured-reserve list, the Ottawa Senators’ backup goalie has an opportunity to seize the net and prove he can handle the load.

The expectation is that Ersson will make his second straight start for the Senators on Saturday night when they host the New York Rangers at the Canadian Tire Centre to wrap up this three-game homestand.

Ersson, 27, surrendered four goals on 26 shots in the club’s 6-2 loss to the San Jose Sharks on Thursday. He’s still looking for his first win after starting the year with a 0-3-0 record in five appearances, with a 4.59 goals-against average and a .835 save percentage.

Those numbers are cause for concern, especially with coach Travis Green estimating that Ullmark’s timeline is one to two weeks and leaving reporters with the impression that it could be longer.

The goalie hasn’t been the least bit pleased with the way he has performed with the Senators after being acquired in what turned out to be a three-way deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Philadelphia Flyers in June.

Ersson isn’t making any excuses.

“It’s fun. You want to play, but I’ve got to play a whole lot better. It’s not been good, not near good enough,” Ersson said following the loss to the Sharks.

“It sucks. The guys are fighting like crazy. So you want to play for them and try to help the team. I’ve just got to be better.”

Questions were raised when Steve Staios, the club’s president of hockey operations and general manager, acquired Ersson and signed him to a two-year deal with a cap hit of $2.2 million US per season.

Ersson, who spent his entire career with the Flyers before joining the Senators, had the second-worst save percentage in the league at .870 last season.

The Senators felt he would improve with a change of scenery but, thus far, that hasn’t been the case. He doesn’t have to be a saviour for the Senators, he just has to make the saves.

The hope is that he’ll be able to get into a rhythm. The Senators will leave on a five-game Western road swing that starts in Las Vegas on Tuesday and ends in Buffalo on Nov. 4.

It would be surprising to see Ullmark suit up for any of those games, which means it’s up to Ersson and Jonas Johansson, called up from the club’s American Hockey League affiliate in Belleville, to get the job done in his absence.

Ideally, the Senators would like it to be Ersson. That’s why they got him.

Ersson hopes he can have success.

“It’s just about finding a way. That’s what it’s all about. It’s finding ways to win. It’s up to me to show that now,” Ersson said.

“I’ve played a fair amount of games. I’ve played hockey for a long time. I know how to do it, so it’s just about me finding a way to come back to myself, just settle down a little bit and play my game.”

If Ersson can’t find his game, then Staios will have to give consideration to finding another goaltender because Ullmark has never played more than 50 games in a season.

Johansson, 31, has had a solid start with Belleville this season. He has posted a 3-1-1 record with a 2.92 GAA and a .912 save percentage in five games this season.

He has a 46-36-14 lifetime record in the National Hockey League, which has included stops in Buffalo, Colorado, Florida and Tampa. Johansson was teammates with Ullmark in the Sabres organization.

Johansson was acquired after the Senators lost Leevi Merilainen on waivers to the Vancouver Canucks during training camp. The club had to take the risk with Merilainen because it had no intention of keeping three goalies on the roster.

The Senators know the challenge will be difficult without Ullmark, but believe they can give Ersson and Johansson a hand.

“He’s a great goalie. He’s been unreal for us,” defenceman Jordan Spence said when asked about losing Ullmark. “But at the same time, I think we’ve got to be more dominant on the ice and in front of Ersson.

“We let Ersson down a little bit (against San Jose), just with some mental errors and mistakes. With Linus out, he’s a great goalie, and hopefully he’ll be back soon.”

Green wasn’t about to pinpoint the loss to the Sharks on Ersson. He gave his team a chance to win, but the Senators allowed San Jose to have some glorious opportunities.

“He was fine. He gave us a good enough game. I can’t pin this game on him, that’s for sure,” said Green.

For all the concern surrounding Ullmark’s injury, the Senators’ only choice is to move on.

It’s up to Ersson. What he does with the opportunity could determine whether Ottawa stays afloat until Ullmark is back.