Flyers' Alexeі Kolosov wіll reрort to remаіnder of trаіnіng саmр

The Flyers and goaltending prospect Alexei Kolosov have settled their months-long dispute, per multiple reports Thursday morning. The Belarusian netminder is on his way to Philadelphia, according to ESPN’s Kevin Weekes, and will see action with the Flyers before their preseason schedule comes to an end, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman adds.

Philadelphia Flyers head coach John Tortorella. Danny Wild-Imagn Images

Concern around the 2021 third-round pick first arose in May, when reports out of Belarus indicated he felt isolated during his brief stint with the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms to end last season and wanted to be loaned back to Dinamo Minsk of the Kontinental Hockey League for 2024-25. Inside AHL Hockey’s Tony Androckitis then reported in late July that Kolosov had informed the Flyers he wouldn’t report to the Phantoms this season, which general manager Daniel Briere later refuted.

Kolosov, 22, then switched his representation to Gold Star Hockey’s Dan Milstein, who informed the Flyers in a late August meeting that the netminder wanted to return to Minsk on loan for the second year of his entry-level contract, something Briere was unwilling to do. 

With no change in either side’s position over the past few weeks, Kolosov remained in Belarus and was not listed on the Flyers’ initial training-camp roster. He’d recently been made available in trade talks, Friedman said last week, although Philly could very well take his name off the block if his return to North America goes well.

The netminder will see preseason action and accept an initial assignment to AHL Lehigh Valley, Friedman reports Thursday. He adds they’ve reached an agreement for a “potential return” to the KHL if Kolosov doesn’t get an NHL chance with the Flyers during the season, though.

While he’s likely not ready for full-time NHL duties yet, there’s legitimate upside in Kolosov’s game. He’s already built up quite the professional resume at a young age, serving as Dinamo’s starter for the past three seasons. 

He’s been steady for a largely middling squad, posting a career-best 22-21-3 record in 47 games last year with a .907 SV% and 2.39 GAA. Kolosov had a .885 SV% and 3.03 GAA in two appearances for the Phantoms to end last season.

The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz was the first to indicate that Kolosov would be reporting to camp.