Kolosov makes his Flyers debut, becoming first Belarusian goalie to start in the NHL

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Aleksei Kolosov became the first Belarusian-born goalie in NHL history Sunday night when he started for the Philadelphia Flyers against the Montreal Canadiens.

The 22-year-old Kolosov was recalled by the Flyers on Saturday night and immediately inserted into the lineup against Montreal. He made 20 saves in Philadelphia’ 4-3 loss to the Canadiens, the Flyers’ seventh loss in eight games.

His best save came when he slid post-to-post in the second period to stop Cole Caufield on a 2-on-0 break.

“I thought (he) played good and he made some really good saves,” Flyers coach John Tortorella said.

The Flyers have gotten spotty goaltending so far from starter Samuel Ersson and backup Ivan Fedotov. When announcing Kolosov as his starter before the game, Tortorella said the Flyers had not gotten the performances they needed from Fedotov so far this season.

“Ivan hasn’t played well enough,” Tortorella said. “We’re trying to solve, trying to look at the situation and see where it goes.”

One of the issues the Flyers have to work through with Kolosov is communication. Kolosov doesn’t speak English, so there are some times when he and his defensemen aren’t on the same page.

“The (defensemen) are talking and you can tell he doesn’t fully understand what we are calling and he ends up rimming a couple of the pucks,” defenseman Travis Sanheim said. “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 tonight.”

Kolosov was a third-round pick by the Flyers in 2021. He spent parts of four seasons in the KHL before coming over to North America for the first time at the end of last season, playing in two games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, the Flyers’ AHL affiliate.

Kolosov and the Flyers had a tumultuous summer. First, the goalie chose not to take part in Philadelphia’s rookie camp in July and later didn’t report for the start of training camp, citing a desire to void playing in the AHL again.

Through his agent, he indicated to the Flyers that he wanted to play in the NHL or be loaned back to his Minsk team in the KHL. The Flyers wouldn’t comply with the loan and there was a short stalemate between the sides before Kolosov agreed to come over near the end of training camp. He played in one preseason game with the Flyers before being sent down to Lehigh Valley.

Part of the agreement to get him to report included the Flyers telling him he would be given an opportunity at the NHL level at some point this season.

That opportunity came in Philadelphia’s ninth game.

The Flyers feel Kolosov put the issues he experienced at the end of last season and in the summer behind him and that he’s in a better place now after just a few weeks in the AHL.

“As far as attitude and where Kolosov’s mind is right now, we have gotten good reports as far as how he has gone about his business down there,” Tortorella said.

Kolosov started four games with the Phantoms before being recalled. He had a 3.29 GAA and an 0.875 save percentage.

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