In recent weeks, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, AHL affiliates of the Philadelphia Flyers, re-signed goalie Parker Gahagen and added former Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Keith Petruzzelli on an AHL contract.
Between Gahagen, Petruzzelli, and Cal Petersen, the Phantoms have more options in goal than they can reasonably manage at once.
These signings have raised further questions about the status of top Flyers prospect Alexei Kolosov, who was recently included on the Flyers training camp roster but also changed agents as the organization eagerly awaits his arrival ahead of camp in September.
The problem, of course, is that Flyers general manager Danny Briere and the front office are still trying to find out whether Kolosov plans to return to North America from his native Belarus.
Figure that Petersen and one of Gahagen and Petruzzelli remain on the Phantoms. That leaves one goalie to join Vinnie Purpura in the ECHL with the Reading Royals as part of the platoon in net there.
Even without Kolosov, the Flyers have two goalies for each tier of the organization, as Sam Ersson and Ivan Fedotov are penciled in to hold down the fort at the NHL level.
And speaking of the NHL goaltending, that’s a big reason why the general public and legit betting sites such as BetMGM are down on the Flyers this year.
At the surface, the Flyers are at least covering their bases in the event that Kolosov does not return; that much is certain. What the organization plans to do with the other goaltenders if or when Kolosov does return is currently unclear.
It is worth noting further that Petruzzelli has played his best pro hockey at the ECHL level.
On the other hand, Gahagen went 10-4-0 with Reading last season, posting a .936 save percentage and one shutout, so that level of competition is a bit low for the former Army netminder. At the AHL level, the 31-year-old was 7-8-3 last season to go with a solid .914 save percentage.
