The Flyers are trimming the camp roster, and Aleksei Kolosov is the latest goaltender sent down.
Philadelphia announced Sunday that it has loaned Kolosov to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, a move that comes after the club signed veteran forward Garrett Wilson to a one-year deal earlier in the day. The reassignment gives the Phantoms their usual goaltending duo back, with Kolosov rejoining Carson Bjarnason as they head into their final preseason game Tuesday and then their season opener Saturday.
For the Flyers, the crease picture now includes Dan Vladar, Joseph Woll and Yaniv Perets, the latter having been signed to a Professional Tryout on Saturday.
The move fits the way Philadelphia has handled other prospects through camp, choosing not to leave them waiting around on the NHL roster for a possible depth role when they can get far more reps in the AHL. That logic applies to Kolosov as well. He needs starts, and he should get them with the Phantoms.
Still, it’s hard to ignore what happened in Kolosov’s last outing. Against the Capitals on Saturday, he allowed five goals on 24 shots in a performance that never really settled down.
He didn’t get perfect help in front of him, but he also struggled on his own, looking uncomfortable in the net and having trouble with even routine looks. His head coach summed it up bluntly: “every time [the Capitals] shot, they scored.”
It was a rough showing, and it’s fair to wonder how much it affected the Flyers’ thinking.
The other obvious takeaway here is what this says about Vladar. He was injured in his only preseason appearance, against the Bruins, but has been working back toward game shape.
He skated some at the end of the week, appeared close to returning, and Danny Briere said Saturday night that if the game had mattered, Vladar might have been able to go. Sending Kolosov down suggests the Flyers feel good enough about Vladar’s status to at least have him ready to back up on opening night.
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