Growing Concerns About Alexei Kolosov, Future With Flyers
The Flyers drafted Alexei Kolosov in the third round of the 2021 NHL Draft. The Belarussian prospect has grown into one of the top goaltending prospects in the world over the past three seasons in the KHL in Russia.
Rumors have circulated following a shaky landing in the AHL after Kolosov came to North America in April 2024. The possibility exists that he would be more comfortable playing professionally overseas closer to his home country.
He also missed Flyers Development Camp in July after a late change of plans. Does he have a future in the NHL?
Was Alexei Kolosov Homesick?
The latest reports out of Belarus don’t exactly inspire confidence. Kolosov has recently practiced at the facility of his former KHL team, Dinamo Minsk.
An article originally published in Russian described Kolosov’s behavior as “infantilism” (via Google translate) after he emigrated to North America to finish the 2023-24 season with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
“I heard that the goalie has already asked the Minsk (his former KHL team) management to do everything to help him resolve the issue of terminating his contract in the NHL. The funniest thing is that he was supposed to fly to Pennsylvania on June 20 on tickets purchased by the Pilots, but ‘completely accidentally’ overslept the flight and remained in Belarus.” –Belarus Hockey (via Google translate)
The Flyers, their fans, and anyone following hockey in North America must consider the language barrier, cultural differences in media practices, and the simple uncertainty of all speculation before jumping to conclusions about Alexei Kolosov.
However, there are additional reasons to doubt his NHL future. Look at another key Flyers prospect who skipped Development Camp in 2023.
Travis Sanheim On Missing Development Camp
The Flyers traded the absentee Cutter Gauthier in January 2024 just over six months after he missed Development Camp at the Flyers Training Center in Vorhees, New Jersey.
Travis Sanheim spoke candidly the night of the trade about a prospect who declined an invitation to an NHL Development Camp.
“The only thing I had heard (about Gauthier’s trade request) was the (decision to skip) development (camp), not wanting to be there. Obviously, as a player in this locker room, that was something that stayed with us (current Flyers). For as long as I know, you show up to development camp, whether you skate or not. If he doesn’t want to be here, we’re happy to move on.” -Travis Sanheim
Gauthier’s attitude clearly didn’t sit well with at least one NHL veteran, and Sanheim had no problem speaking for some of his teammates.
It’s fair to wonder if the same attitude translates to a questionable situation surrounding Alexei Kolosov.
Danny Briere Speaks On Alexei Kolosov
Danny Briere pointed to “a lot of logistics” as the reason Kolosov didn’t attend Flyers Development Camp.
“He came in late last year to Lehigh (and) had a long season (before) coming here, so we just gave him the option to stay home a little longer.” -Danny Briere (July 1)
The young general manager directly admitted last summer that Gauthier declined his invitation to Development Camp. He told the media that the organization didn’t know why, but he never mentioned the Flyers offering up an option.
Although the slight variance in messaging is important, Briere didn’t speak with the most conviction when Kevin Kurz asked him if the Flyers expect Kolosov to return for the 2024-25 season.
“At this time, yes. I know there’s the rumblings. We’ve been in discussions with him. He’s told us there’s nothing to that (reports he’ll remain overseas). We’re still hopeful that it’s just noise. So as far as we know, he’s under contract. He can’t play anywhere else. I don’t know what else or what other option (Kolosov has) if he decides to stay home. They did it with (Ivan) Fedotov I guess. It got him and them in trouble. I can’t see that happening, so really, we expect him in camp with us.” -Danny Briere
Briere’s tone aligned with Dan Hilferty’s message in June about the Flyers being “as transparent as possible in an environment where not everything can be transparent” during their organizational rebuild.
However, phrases like “as far as we know” and “if he decides to stay home” left plenty of room for additional questions about his goalie’s future.
A Top Flyers Prospect
Alexei Kolosov played 111 regular-season and 14 playoff games in the KHL over the past three seasons. The 22-year-old landed second in 97.5 The Fanatic’s upcoming Flyers prospect rankings. Only Matvei Michkov will rank ahead of him.
The Flyers also drafted goaltenders Carson Bjarnason and Egor Zavragin in 2023. They’ve built a prospect pipeline that the organization is excited about.
However, the outrageous chaos surrounding the position in this organization certainly isn’t lost on Briere.
“There’s been a lot of issues along the way in the Flyers’ history with goaltending. What we’ve tried to do is build a solid upcoming class of goaltenders that hopefully down the road can become the next goalies for the future of the Flyers.” –Danny Briere on 97.5 The Fanatic
Download the 97.5 The Fanatic app to hear Tim Saunders and Todd Fedoruk on the flagship radio broadcast of the Philadelphia Flyers.
2024 NHL Draft: Every Philadelphia Flyers Pick
1st Round (13)- Jett Luchanko
Center, Guelph Storm (OHL)
Danny Briere thought outside the box. Jett Luchanko wasn’t the choice of the mock drafts. He wasn’t even on the radar of most NHL scouts before the 2023-24 season.
However, the Flyers determined that Luchanko’s excellent speed makes him a prospect with a high ceiling.
The Flyers traded back one spot and passed on prospects ranked higher than Luchanko in the public sphere. However, they showed the willingness to push against the majority opinion.
“His work ethic. If you watch him play, he’s always one of the hardest workers (on) both sides of the ice. His vision (and) his hockey sense are high end. There’s obviously some things that we’ll work with him to develop and increase, but to have a guy understand both sides of the ice the way he does… that’s really exciting for us.” -Danny Briere
2nd Round (59)- Spencer Gill
Defenseman, Rimouski Oceanic (QMJHL)
The Flyers traded back from the 12th-overall spot to the 13th in the first round. They passed up the opportunity to select defenseman Zeev Buium, a prospect generally ranked higher than Jett Luchanko.
Danny Briere acknowledged that Buium’s size on the blue line played a factor. The Flyers went the opposite direction in the second round.
Spencer Gill stands at 6-foot-4. He brings more of a physical game than some of the current Flyers defensemen but less offensive upside. He scored 12 goals and added 34 assists in juniors in Quebec last season.
