In lieu of a new round of Alexei Kolosov reports that suggest a return in 2024-25 is unlikely, the Philadelphia Flyers are presented with a new potential trade option in the form of disgruntled Nashville Predators goalie prospect Yaroslav Askarov.
According to a report from former NHL goalie and current NHL insider Kevin Weekes, Askarov, 22, has requested a trade away from the Predators and has informed the organization he will not report to the AHL to play for the Milwaukee Admirals.
Askarov was the 11th overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft and has spent the last two seasons in Milwaukee, winning a total of 56 games, posting a .911 save percentage, and recording nine shutouts during his time in the minors.
Askarov’s decision comes in the weeks that followed Nashville’s bold move to give incumbent starter Juuse Saros a lucrative eight-year contract extension, tying the Finn down in Music City until he’s 38 years old.
From a Flyers perspective, the uncertainty around Kolosov leaves a large age gap in the goalie pipeline. Sam Ersson will turn 25 on Oct. 19, the very beginning of the 2024-25 regular season, and his new backup, Ivan Fedotov, will turn 28 on Nov. 28. The other two goalies behind them are Egor Zavragin, 18, and Carson Bjarnason, 19.
While there’s obviously a reason the Predators decided to throw money at Saros instead of moving him and letting Askarov take over, winning in sports (not just hockey) is all about taking risks.
The Flyers would likely have to part ways with either Ersson or Fedotov as part of an offer to Nashville for Askarov, and it won’t be Fedotov given how unproven he is and the trouble he went through to personally arrange his move to Philadelphia at the end of last season.
Askarov, too, is unproven, but his talent alone suggests there’s a pretty good chance he’s at least as good as Ersson or Fedotov, with the potential to establish himself as one of the NHL’s elite goaltenders in time.
Flyers fans will also recall the time, many moons ago, when the organization elected to move on from Stanley Cup champion and two-time Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky early in his career simply because they had managed to land Ilya Bryzgalov on a massive contract, one that is still being paid via buyout to this day.
Whether it’s Askarov or another young goalie–even Kolosov–the Flyers can’t afford to be risk-averse and avoid building the most talented team possible. Whether they kick the tires and determine Askarov isn’t the player for them is a different discussion in itself.
It’s also worth noting that the Flyers have three first-round picks and three second-round picks in the 2025 NHL Draft. It wouldn’t make sense to use all of them and have a number of top prospects who are all exactly the same age. For contractual reasons down the road, there has to be some variance.
When you’re rebuilding from zero and hit snags with top prospects like Kolosov and Cutter Gauthier, you have to get creative to find other ways to bridge the talent gap, especially now that Matvei Michkov is playing for the Flyers and burning his ELC. For this reason, Askarov should be on the Flyers’ radar, even if it requires making some tough decisions in prospective negotiations.
