Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Alexei Kolosov made history as the first Belarusian-born goalie to start in the NHL on Sunday.
Despite his landmark debut, however, the Flyers couldn’t help him collectively and dropped the game losing 4-3 to the Montreal Canadiens at home, with the future in Philly’s net still uncertain after the debutant allowed four goals on 24 shots.
Kolosov, 22, entered the season after a tense summer with the Flyers. Initially unwilling to report to AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley and demanding a spot in the NHL roster, Kolosov ultimately joined Philadelphia only after the Flyers committed to giving him major-league opportunities this season.
Kolosov’s debut finally arrived a couple of weeks after the start of the regular season, but while he showed promising flashes, it also left Flyers coach John Tortorella hesitant about the next steps in net.
Aleksei Kolosov leads the Flyers onto the ice for warmups. The 22-year-old from Belarus is set to make his NHL debut. pic.twitter.com/guFwhrjind
— Jordan Hall (@JHallNBCS) October 27, 2024
“I thought our goalie played good,” Tortorella said after the game, per Jamey Baskow. “He made some really good saves.”
However, Kolosov’s play faltered as he conceded two goals after starting strong, as well as a power-play shot from Caufield and a late-period tap-in by Jake Evans. Tortorella attributed some of the blame to a lack of communication between Kolosov and his defense. It’s been reported that Kolosov barely speaks English, which is causing miscommunications between the goalie and the defense corps.
“The [defensemen] are talking, and you can tell he doesn’t fully understand what we’re calling,” Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim said after the loss, per ESPN. “It’s something we have to continue to work on… it’s a tough spot for him to be put in, but I thought he made some key saves.”
Philadelphia’s starting goalie options have been inconsistent this season, with Samuel Ersson struggling and Ivan Fedotov failing to provide stability in three starts.
Tortorella hinted at the lack of a plan for the goalie rotation following Kolosov’s debut on Sunday, leaving the door open for all possibilities.
“Ivan hasn’t played well enough,” Tortorella said of Fedotov. “We’re trying to solve, trying to look at the situation and see where it goes.
“I just want us to not try to fix everything. We need to calm ourselves down, be together up the ice, be together coming back into our end zone, and play as a group.”
The Flyers are struggling at the start of the season having put up a horrible 2-6-1 record through the first nine games, tied for a second-worst 5 points.
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