Even after a loss in which Jordan Spence and Travis Green said that he was not to blame, Samuel Ersson still faced the media after the Senators lost 6-2 to the San Jose Sharks and took responsibility for the result.
“I think we’ve got to be more dominant on the ice in front of ‘Erss’. You know, I think we kind of let ‘Erss’ down a little bit tonight, just with some mental errors and mistakes,” said Spence after the game.
Ersson allowed four goals on 26 shots on Thursday, a day after Linus Ullmark was placed on injury reserve by the Senators following his third-period exit from Wednesday’s win over Florida. Two more came into an empty net after Ersson was pulled late in the third.
“He was fine. He gave us a good enough game to definitely [have a chance]. I can't pin this game on him, that's for sure,” said Green.
“Maybe the first goal you could say that he might [have saved]. I don't know. That's really nitpicking, a guy makes a hell of a shot. Second goal is a tip in, goes right under the bar from a hard tip from outside, and then [our] power play gives him two tap ins.”
Still, Ersson was dissapointed in his own play on Thursday and during the first month of the season, saying he needs to find a way to make saves at the biggest moments, especially now that he is the team’s de facto starting goalie.
“Yeah, I mean it's fun [starting]. You want to play, but I’ve obviously got to play a whole lot better. It's not been good, not near good enough,” said Ersson.
“So yeah, it sucks. I mean 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.”
Ersson’s three starts this season have all been on the second end of back-to-backs, a tough assignment for the 27-year-old. Now, he’ll have a chance to start more games and try to find his groove in between the posts.
“Hopefully, for sure. I mean, it doesn't really matter though. Like, 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,” said Ersson.
“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 kind of come back to myself, just settle down a little bit and play my game.”
The Senators will reset mentally and physically on Friday, taking a day off from the practice ice. On Saturday, they’ll wrap up a three-game homestand when they welcome the New York Rangers to town. You can purchase your tickets for that game here.
