Arsenii Sergeev’s path to this point has been anything but straight, and that’s exactly what makes him one of the more intriguing names in the Flames’ system. The Russian goaltender is tied for 18th in FN’s 2026 Flames summer prospect rankings after turning a long, stubborn climb into an NHL debut and a first pro season that gave Calgary plenty to think about.
Sergeev, a left-catching netminder born Dec. 16, 2002, in Yaroslavl, Russia, stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 194 pounds. Calgary grabbed him in the seventh round of the 2021 NHL Draft, 205th overall, after he’d already made the decision in 2019 to leave Russia and try to build his career in North America.
That move sent him through plenty of different stops. He spent time in his hometown system with Lokomotiv-2004 Yaroslavl and also skated for HK Dmitrov before coming to the United States.
In 2018-19, he bounced across three junior levels, playing for the NAHL’s New Jersey Junior Titans, the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede and the NCDC’s New Jersey Rocket. The next season, he found a steadier home with the NAHL’s Shreveport MudBugs and helped them win a league championship.
The Flames’ decision to take him in the seventh round fit a pattern for their goaltending group, which had also used the final round on Dustin Wolf in 2019. Sergeev then moved to the USHL’s Tri-City Storm in his draft-plus-one year and was named that league’s top goaltender.
College brought another layer to the journey. He arrived at UConn in 2022 and spent two seasons in a tandem setup, sharing time with Logan Terness in 2022-23 and Nashville draft pick Ethan Haider in 2023-24.
Wanting more consistent work, he transferred to Penn State for 2024-25 and immediately took over as the starter. Injury cost him six weeks, but after returning in early January 2025, he caught fire and stayed there, helping Penn State reach the Frozen Four before falling to Boston University in the national semi-final.
After Penn State’s season ended, Sergeev signed his entry-level deal with Calgary and turned pro for 2025-26. He opened the year with the Rapid City Rush in the ECHL, then earned a midseason move to the AHL after strong play and injuries elsewhere in the system.
Once he got there, he stayed. When Devin Cooley came down with the flu and disrupted the plan for the Flames’ final game of the season, Sergeev got the call and made the start.
He stopped 27 shots for his first NHL win.
The timeline says plenty on its own: his last NCAA game came on Apr. 10, 2025, and 371 days later, on Apr. 16, 2026, he was in the NHL. It was, by any measure, a huge year.
Paige Siewert, who covers the Wranglers, saw plenty to like in that first pro season:
Arsenii Sergeev was hard not to root for last season. He approached his first season of pro with a good attitude and a smile on his face.
His work ethic earned him his opportunities and while you did see positional errors you’d expect from a rookie, he found a way to build his game and correct them. He was a great goalie to lean on heavily for a struggling Wranglers team and managed to stay healthy despite the workload.
He did all the things right and earned his recognition and NHL finale debut.
Looking ahead to 2026-27, Sergeev is still under contract for one more season. His two-year entry-level deal was tolled in 2025-26, and he should begin next year as the Wranglers’ de facto top option in net after how he finished last season. He’s expected to share the crease with first-year pro Kirill Zarubin, another Russian.
The organization won’t need Sergeev to carry everything on his own, but it does need steady goaltending. He was sharp behind a shaky Wranglers defense at times last season and even stole points on occasion.
If he can keep giving that team a chance most nights, he’ll be doing exactly what Calgary needs. And after all the stops, adjustments and tests he’s already handled, the next step should be worth watching.
In Other News...
Flames Face A Tough Call As Trade Buzz Starts Building
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Frosts situation is what makes the chatter worth watching from Calgarys side. He is heading into the final year of his contract after a career season that brought him 22 goals and 43 points, and that combination of production and timeline tends to invite attention from teams hunting for immediate help. Nothing is confirmed, and the whole thing remains speculative for now, but when a productive player reaches this stage, the phone lines can get busy quickly. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Face One Tough Blue Line Decision Before Camp
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For the Flames, the issue is less about finding depth than deciding which pieces fit into the long view. A logjam on defense can create value in the trade market, and it can also leave players wondering where they stand once camp opens. However it shakes out, this is one of those preseason questions that can shape the roster well beyond opening night. [Read more 🡒]
Dustin Wolf Is About To Learn How Much Respect Hes Earned
Dustin Wolf has spent the better part of his first stretch in Calgary giving Flames fans a reason to believe in the crease even as the team has gone through its share of struggles. The young goaltender has been steady enough that plenty around the organization already view him as a top-tier NHL netminder, and that kind of respect tends to show up in conversations like the one NHL Network is preparing to have ahead of the 2026-27 season.
NHL Network is set to unveil its top 20 goaltenders ranking on Sunday night, and Wolf looks like a strong candidate to be included among the leagues better starters. For Calgary, the interest goes beyond the number next to his name, because it is one more measuring stick for how the rest of the hockey world sees a goalie who has already earned plenty of trust inside the fan base. [Read more 🡒]