The 2025 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship has come and gone. The United States won their first gold medal at the event since 1933 with a 1-0 overtime win over Switzerland, and Sweden took home bronze for a second consecutive year as Sam Ersson backstopped them to a 6-2 win over Denmark.
Ersson went 4-0-0 in the tournament with a .934 SV%, 1.16 GAA and 2 shutouts in five appearances for the Tre Kronor.
The Philadelphia Flyers netminder led the Swedes in SV% and GAA, and tied for the team lead in wins and shutouts with Jacob Markström. Overall, he finished third in the tournament in GAA and fifth in SV% as well.
Ersson’s 2025 campaign with the Swedish national team was nothing short of phenomenal. He was dominant in his lone appearance at the 4 Nations Face-Off, making 32 saves and earning Second Star honors in a 2-1 win over the United States on February 17th. Ersson then joined Sweden for the Czech Hockey Games portion of the Euro Hockey Tour, going 2-0-0 with a .940 SV% and 1.50 GAA in early May. Combine those performances with his World Championship run and he racked up a 7-0-0 record, 1.23 GAA, .949 SV%, and 2 shutouts for Sweden this year.
That run will bode extremely well for his bid for a roster spot on the 2026 Olympics squad. Sweden’s goaltending pool is chock full of talent between Ersson, Markström, Linus Ullmark, and Filip Gustavsson. NHLers Arvid Söderblom and Anton Forsberg have prior experience with the national team earlier in their careers as well. Ersson’s strong play whenever called upon for Sweden could help his case as his NHL numbers haven’t been as impressive as Markström’s, Ullmark’s, or Gustavsson’s. However, his performance surely impressed the Flyers and showed that he does have the talent to be a successful and consistent starting goalie.
Three other Flyers participated in the World Championship as well as Travis Konecny, Travis Sanheim, and Tyson Foerster all represented Team Canada. Konecny tied for the tournament lead in assists (10) and tied Nathan MacKinnon for the Canadian lead in points (13). Sanheim and Foerster each recorded 2 goals and 1 assist for their country. Canada was upset by Denmark in the elimination round and finished fifth in the final standings.
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