It has been an interesting saga between the Philadelphia Flyers and 22-year-old Belarussian goaltender Alexei Kolosov. The young goalie had not reported to the 2024 Training Camp over a week into the preseason ramp-up process.
Philadelphia’s General Manager bluntly addressed the situation with the media ten days ago when he said if Kolosov wanted to play hockey, it would be in the Philadelphia development system in North America. Yesterday, information was circulated online that the goalie would be traveling back from the KHL for the final two weeks of Flyers camp.
Alexei Kolosov arrives at Flyers’ Training Camp
Like last year when Daniel Briere pulled a big Russian goalie named Ivan Fedotov out of a proverbial hat, the Flyers’ General Manager quietly slipped the much-discussed prospect into the second skating session on Thursday afternoon. Heading into the session at 11 am practice, only two goalies were expected with Cal Petersen and Eetu Makiniemi sharing the practice reps with the collection of mostly Phantoms-bound skaters. A buzz circulated the small population in attendance when a third geared up entered the skating surface.
Upon closer inspection of the Flyers-themed mask with the Belarussian flag on the back, it became clear who the third mystery goaltender on the ice was. Alexei Kolosov had arrived at the 2024 Flyers Traning Camp… and I can only imagine what the third-year Flyers GM was thinking standing by himself as a small crowd formed to collect evidence of the surprise attendee at training camp.
For approximately an hour, the three goalies rotated drills before Kolosov worked on some individual drills after practice. Working with Flyers coaches, the young goalie worked on collecting dump-in behind the net and transitioning the puck to the defense along the wall. It is an important skill to work on so the defense and the goalie can work in tandem in a very high-paced situation where communication might be limited, at best.
With about two weeks remaining in training camp, Alexei Kolosov still needs to make an impression on Briere and bench boss John Tortorella. The young netminder could find himself suiting up for Lehigh Valley next month when Flyers camp ends. Flyers starter Sam Ersson looked crisp in a 2-0 preseason win over the New York Islanders last night. Fedotov appeared in the first two periods of the initial preseason game stopping 10-of-12 shots on goal.
The Philadelphia Flyers reach the halfway point of the preseason schedule with a home game against the Boston Bruins tomorrow at 7 pm. Philly is 2-1 on the exhibition schedule, while Boston enters at 1-2. The rosters for the game have not yet been announced.
