5 Flyers Storylines To Watch During NHL Offseason: Acquiring A Goalie

Acquiring the right goaltender is seemingly a perpetual priority for the Philadelphia Flyers.

Shaky performances between the pipes have ruined any outside possibility of a playoff appearance in the first two seasons under the current front office, and the goaltender graveyard narrative has plagued the franchise for a quarter century.

The Flyers hope for Sam Ersson to play in tandem in 2025-26. Ivan Fedotov and Aleksei Kolosov struggled to back up Ersson in his third NHL season. Neither former KHL standout inspires any sense of long-term stability in the crease in Philadelphia.

Danny Briere will consider acquiring a veteran goaltender – likely in a short-term, stopgap role – to complete the tandem as an offseason priority.

Carter Hart left the Flyers in January 2024, and Philadelphia’s goaltending has plummeted since.

The Flyers slipped into the NHL’s 32nd spot in save percentage at .884 in 2023-24. A desperate revolving door of inadequate goalies cost them a playoff spot in the final weeks of the season. It was the type of situation that reminds a hockey world concentrating so heavily on skaters that a team simply can’t overcome poor goaltending.

Matters became worse in 2024-25 without the benefit of Hart for the first half of the season to pad the stats. Flyers goaltenders finished 32nd in the league with an .872 save percentage. They allowed 45.79 goals against above expected, per MoneyPuck. Their total more than doubled any other NHL team, as the Nashville Predators allowed the second most with 17.7.

Fedotov failed to master the difficult transition to the North American style of play at age 28. The towering netminder will count for $3.275 million against cap in 2025-26. His long, admirable journey of perseverance to the NHL unfortunately cost him valuable development years.

Kolosov never properly demonstrated signs of development that qualified him to play at the NHL level. Disagreements off the ice cost him the opportunity to find rhythm in the AHL, a more standard and practical path for a 23-year-old prospect.

Fedotov could potentially play for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms if clears waivers for a demotion, but the Flyers have faded from their confidence in Kolosov as a long-term goaltender option.

A pair of 2023 NHL Draft picks have a likelier future as part of the organization.

Carson Bjarnason joined the Phantoms late last season. He’ll have a chance to earn AHL starts in 2025-26. Danny Briere told 97.5 The Fanatic last offseason that Russian prospect Egor Zavragin was likely three years away from the NHL.

Despite promising development from the two goaltending prospects, the Flyers must address the short-term and long-term future of the most notoriously difficult position in hockey to predict.

Danny Briere and Keith Jones have emphasized the need to compete without bottoming out during the rebuild. However, their goaltending situation has sunk them in the standings.

They cannot enter the season without a more stable tandem and expect the Flyers to improve their record significantly.

A veteran stopgap goaltender could solidify the Flyers in the short term. Ersson could also benefit from a more manageable workload without the expectations of a number one goalie after a season when he dealt with recurring injuries.

Jake Allen has spent 12 NHL seasons with the St. Louis Blues, Montreal Canadiens, and New Jersey Devils. His potential fit with the Flyers checks the right boxes for a veteran tandem goaltender to complement Ersson.

The grizzled netminder has earned and lost starting roles, switched teams, won and lost playoff games, and lifted the Stanley Cup during his NHL career. He will turn 35 before the season begins.

Allen shared the crease with Jacob Markstrom in 2025-26. The two experienced goaltenders developed chemistry as an effective tandem with clearly established complementary roles.

Allen finished ninth in the NHL with 18.4 goals against above expected in 31 games. Most goalies who finished ahead of him benefitted from significantly more playing time. His .906 save percentage aligned closely with his career averages after dips below the .900 benchmark the previous two seasons.

The Athletic ranked Allen first among this summer’s underwhelming group of free agent goalies. Their model projected a two-year contract worth $3.85 million in average annual value (AAV).  

The Devils will decide their long-term goaltending plans based on Markstrom’s future. It’s no guarantee Allen doesn’t remain in a comfortable home where he’s blended well with a respected pro’s attitude and a willingness to accept a specific role.

Allen wouldn’t fit the hectic carousel the Flyers used in 2024-25. Signing the top goalie on the free agent market with plans for a tandem requires commitment to that tandem, whereas Tortorella publicly demoted Fedotov to third on the depth chart last season after just three starts in October.

For evidence of the unpredictability of the position, look no further than former Flyers goalie Alex Lyon.

Lyon spent most of his tenure in the organization from 2016-2021 in Lehigh Valley. He had no clear path to a sustained NHL role when he left the Flyers at age 28.

Stints with three organizations have turned him into a solid second option and the third-ranked free agent goaltender of the 2025 offseason.

Lyon built a strong reputation off the ice during his five seasons within the organization. He's posted a .904 save percentage in 91 games since signing a free agent deal with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2021. 

Other free agent goalies Dan Vladar, Alexandar Georgiev, and Anton Forsberg would raise more questions as potential free agent fits than a steady option like Lyon.

The Flyers could land the 32-year-old journeyman on a projected two-year deal worth $900K in AAV if a more aggressive suitor for Jake Allen outprices them on the free agent market.