In the Flyers’ last game, they were beaten by one-time top goalie prospect Anthony Stolarz, who goes by the nickname, Stolie the Goalie.

It was a reminder of just how often the Flyers have struggled in the past to actually cultivate homegrown goaltending talent.

But if all goes well, they could have another lyrically-nicknamed goaltender donning the orange and black soon.

That’s right, meet Koli the Goalie.

Flyers president Keith Jones first hinted at the notion of Flyers goalie prospect Alexei Kolosov coming over to North America this season on February Snow the Goalie appearance. Here’s what he said at the time:


Now, seven weeks later, it looks like the time has come for Kolosov’s North American arrival:


His KHL, team Dinamo Minsk, announced he’s departing to come play for the Flyers, and, as you would expect, Flyers Twitter handled it rationally.

There is a lot to like about Kolosov as a prospect. But let’s pump the brakes on him suddenly swooping in and carrying the Flyers to unrivaled heights. After all, the kid is still a prospect. An intriguing one, but a prospect just the same.

When he arrives in North America, he’s not just going to walk into the Flyers roster. I was told Tuesday by a Flyers source that the plan is having him go to Lehigh Valley of the AHL.

There’s an acclimation process that’s needed. He’ll play a little with the Phantoms and see if he’s ready to take on the North American game or if he needs an adjustment period.

There’s a chance his adjustment period will be shorter. His home rink in Minsk is NHL-sized, so it could be an easier transition for Kolosov, but it’s more than just angles and sightlines. The style of play is different here, too. It’s not a snap of the fingers and you adapt type of situation.

There is hope that if all goes well, he could get a start or two at the NHL level in April and you see if he passes that test as well before you consider anything further.

That is the Flyers’ hope. After seeing what Cal Petersen and more recently Felix Sandstrom have done when they’ve needed to fill in for Sam Ersson, the Flyers need an alternative. But they also don’t want to put a prospect at risk of failure if he’s not ready for the brightest lights.

It’s worth getting excited about the potential of a homegrown goalie to be a big part of the team’s future. After all, Jonesy returned to Snow the Goalie about 10 days ago and compared Kolosov to New York Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin, albeit more in style than in projection – as he smartly doesn’t want to put too much pressure on a young goalie either. Check it out:

Thing is, Kolosov has impressed in what is widely considered the second-best league in the world behind the NHL.

Kolosov, 22, who is from Belarus, was a third round pick, No. 78 overall, by the Flyers in the 2021 NHL entry draft and has played parts of four seasons in the KHL with Minsk.

From all reports, he all but stole two games in the playoffs this season against No. 1 seed Dynamo Moscow, keeping Minsk in a series for six games that many predicted would be a short, lopsided edge for Moscow.

That kind of clutch gene is not easily found in a lot of players, and the Flyers hope it eventually translates well under the microscope of the best hockey league on earth.

Kolosov was a Chuck Fletcher draft pick but was scouted heavily by Flyers European scout Ken Hoodikoff.

You may recognize that name. He’s been a Flyers scout based in Russia for the past 15 years and he was integral in the scouting and drafting of top prospect Matvei Michkov last season. Hoodikoff also pushed for the Flyers to draft 18-year-old goalie Yegor Zavragin in the third round last summer, this after they had just traded up to select Brandon Wheat Kings goalie Carson Bjarnason in the second round.

Getting Kolosov over to the U.S. and under their control was an important step in his development, as far the Flyers were concerned. It was obvious they were excited at the prospect of getting him here this spring as far back as last July when they signed him to his entry-level contract that included this season (at $925,000) – all while knowing they would burn his first year even though he wouldn’t be available until March.

It’s just another step in the Flyers rebuild, and if he happens to prove that he can handle North American hockey and gets a start or two before the end of the season in the NHL, that’s great, too – but it’s not imperative.

The Flyers will do right by Kolosov. They’ll ensure his development is not stunted by a wanton desire to just make the playoffs this season.

But if he happens to help the big club in the process, then Jones, Flyers GM Danny Briere, and coach John Tortorella will take it.