The Philadelphia Flyers are getting ready to send goaltender Aleksei Kolosov down to the AHL and recall Lehigh Valley Phantoms forward Anthony Richard, according to a report by the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jackie Spiegel.
Kolosov made a stink about playing in Lehigh Valley late last season and reportedly refused to return to the Phantoms — threatening to go back to his home country of Belarus if he was assigned there. He started the season in the AHL after showing up to training camp late, going 1-2-1 with an .875 save percentage and 3.29 goals against average in four games.
However, after four months in the NHL and some lackluster results, it appears as if the netminder will head back down to the Phantoms after all.
The 23-year-old goalie has gone 4-8-1 with an .870 SV% and 3.45 GAA in 15 games (11 starts) with the Flyers. He had a strong three-game stretch against the Blackhawks, Predators, and Blues, allowing two goals in each contest, but has been largely unimpressive outside of that. This is Kolosov’s first taste of North American hockey and it became clear that he could use some seasoning in the AHL.
Kolosov’s demotion comes on the heels of Phantoms goalie Cal Petersen suffering a lower-body injury that will keep him out six to eight weeks. With Eetu Makiniemi already on the shelf, the Phantoms had Parker Gahagen and Keith Petruzzelli — two players you have definitely heard of — as their goalies over the weekend. Petersen’s injury opens the door for Kolosov to start for the Phantoms, which is arguably what he should’ve been doing all season long.
Samuel Ersson is healthy once again and has been stellar since the Christmas break. Ivan Fedotov has also had a few strong games to leapfrog Kolosov on the depth chart for the Flyers’ backup goalie job. That left Kolosov as the odd man out, and with the KHL season coming to a close in two months, he’ll get some action in the AHL.
The Phantoms have a three-in-three situation this weekend with home games against Springfield and Bridgeport before going up to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Sunday. It’s safe to assume that Kolosov will start in at least one of those games and should get multiple looks this weekend.
The Flyers have a back-to-back to end this week before hosting the Devils next Monday night, so the only way that Kolosov would’ve even dressed is due to an injury. And if that occurs, the netminder will be just a short drive away in the beautiful Lehigh Valley.
Kolosov is in the second year of his three-year entry-level contract with a cap hit of $925,000. He still has a chance to be a part of the future in Philadelphia, but he’ll need to prove himself a bit in the AHL.
As for Anthony Richard, he joins recent call-ups Olle Lycksell and Rodrigo Abols as forward options for John Tortorella with Ryan Poehling (upper-body injury) and Scott Laughton (personal reasons) out. Richard has six points (two goals, four assists) in seven NHL games this season.
UPDATE:
This has been made official by the Flyers. And in addition to Kolosov, the team is also sending forward Olle Lycksell down to the Phantoms, which makes the recall of Anthony Richard make much more sense.
Transactions: We have loaned goaltender Aleksei Kolosov and forward Olle Lycksell back to the @LVPhantoms (AHL). Additionally, we have recalled forward Anthony Richard from Lehigh Valley. https://t.co/uDimxCEWXP
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) January 22, 2025
