Jan 2, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Aleksei Kolosov (35) controls a Vegas Golden Knights shot during the second period at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
Imagine being 22-years-old and being told you are one of the 150-or-so best individuals in the world at something.
What goes through your mind? How do you deal with that? How do you manage your ability to stay humble while also exuding confidence to ensure you stay in that group, and maybe even climb higher into more rarified air of the top 20?
Now imagine all the external noise that could try to influence your feelings about it. The pressures. The recommendations. The wisdom. The advice that you don't really know if it's good or not.
It's a lot to process.
Not to mention, you start to wonder why certain people are telling you what they are telling you. What is their motivation? Do they actually have your best interest at heart, or are they looking to use your situation for their own benefit?
Seems daunting, eh?
Now, add to that the notion of trying to live up to your expectations - both personal and professional - while being in another country where they don't speak your language and you don't speak theirs.
Imagine doing it without your support group of family and close friends nearby.
And finally, imagine that with all of this happening all at once, you have to perform better than you ever have before to ensure that you can continue to climb the ladder of success.
This is a challenge that many professional athletes face - especially those from other parts of the world trying to make their way in the top leagues based in the U.S.
So, last year, that's what Aleksei Kolosov was dealing with when he first arrived in North America to play for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
It was a whirlwind. It was fast and furious and right before a playoff and it was a challenge. He ended up barely playing, struggling to assimilate, and feeling homesick.
Kolosov. Holy shit. After coming in cold. pic.twitter.com/Lz7FYArWNi
It didn't help that he had a bunch of people back home in Belarus and also people around the KHL where he played prior to last March telling him that the AHL was an inferior league and that playing there would prevent his development, not enhance it.
So, Kolosov made it known to the Flyers that he didn't want to play in the AHL. He had an allegiance to the organization. This wasn't a Cutter Gauthier situation where he didn't want to be a part of the Flyers. On the contrary, he wanted to be with the team that drafted him.
But after hearing so many whispers about the AHL from back in Russia, he was of the mindset that if he couldn't play in the NHL that he should play in the KHL rather than the AHL, and he wanted the Flyers to loan him there if he wasn't going to be on the big club.
It seemed like a simple request, but in reality, it's not. NHL teams don't often make investments in players of a certain age to loan them to a foreign league and an unaffiliated program where they can't keep their eyes on their own player.
If you have a contract, that team wants you to be with their coaches, and under their watchful eye to make sure you are progressing as needed to eventually be a strong contributor at the NHL level.
But the voices in Kolosov's ear were strong. And in Russia, unlike in North America, player agents conduct business like it's the Wild West.
They don't care if you are signed with another agent, they will still try to lure you away. There are agents who will intentionally misrepresent certain things to try and convince a player to leave one agent and sign on with them. It's a true dog-eat-dog world.
The Flyers heard from multiple, supposed representatives from Kolosov over the summer, and weren't actually sure at times which ones were legit and which ones weren't. It confused the situation further.
Daniel Milstein is the North American agent for Kolosov who deals with Flyers GM Danny Briere now.
He understands the positives about the AHL far more than agents from Russia or Belarus do, so he's been integral on having Kolosov agree to start the season with the Phantoms and also agreeing to go back down there now.
But he also represents his client and has to do what his client wishes, and the fact that the pressures from back home about the AHL being inferior are still real, he has to push back against the Flyers a little bit and tell them Kolosov doesn't want to just play in the AHL the rest of the year.
Aleksei Kolosov did report to the Phantoms, in case there was any doubt, and is on the ice now for practice in Lehigh Valley
And the Flyers understand that leverage. It's not ideal, but it is a perfect storm that exists because Ivan Fedotov, the current backup goalie, is not waiver exempt, so the Flyers can't just shuttle the two back and forth to Lehigh Valley.
The silver lining though, is the timing is pretty good right now for the Flyers to send Kolosov down. They can buy themselves about a month of Kolosov being in the AHL without much complaint. The next two weeks are no different than, say, a conditioning assignment would be. And then, soon after that, the league is shutting down for two weeks for the Four Nations tournament.
So, when the team returns from that on Feb. 22 against Edmonton at the Wells Fargo Center, Kolosov will want to be back, even if its as a third goalie again.
Briere doesn't have to bring him back. At that point, Kolosov won't really have a choice. The KHL season will be almost over. So, if he wants to play hockey, if the Flyers deem that it's best for him to stay in Lehigh Valley, he will either have to accept it, or go back home, not play and not get paid either.
But, the Flyers likely assured Kolosov that he'll be recalled at some point. The concern remains about Sam Ersson's groin, as he has missed time on three different occasions this season. So, they don't want to overuse him.
And while Fedotov has been better of late, it's still a small sample size, and they aren't sure if his good play in goal will sustain, so the option to go back to Kolosov at some point is still very real.
But why put up with all this drama?
That's because the Flyers believe Kolosov has an NHL future. It might not be right now, but they don't want to just lose the asset. They don't want to trade him off and have him turn into another Sergei Bobrovsky. And they don't want him stomping back to Belarus in a temper tantrum and having to terminate a contract.
Back to this. Kolosov has another opportunity to play and make himself too good to be ignored. In his four wins as a Flyer he was really good. So there are signs of his capabilities in his resume already. He just needs to keep working to get more consistent. #LetsGoFlyers https://t.co/w6diLyaXFY
They want to be sure of what they have first - and goaltending takes time to figure that out. But Kolosov's quickness and athleticism are intriguing enough to not want to hastily move on, even if all of this drama from back home is unnecessary.
Briere and his staff feel it's worth the headaches now for what still could be down the road. And if that turns out to bear fruit, then everyone else will feel the same way too.
It's a gamble, sure. But the only thing Briere is truly gambling on is public opinion, and we all know that swings like a pendulum, anyway, so it's worth the risk.
As for if there's a concern that having this play out as it has won't be a precedent for future demands from prospect players, well, that's where Briere is stuck between a rock and hard place.
Pushing Kolosov away would allow the masses to create a narrative that the Flyers don't handle their young players well since the stench of the Gauthier situation will linger until the team is consistently good.
But coddling Kolosov could send the wrong message to other young players who wonder why they don't get treated with similar kid gloves.
The odds, though, are better with the latter. Because if it works out for the organization, and when Kolosov returns he's a better goalie, brimming with confidence, then the narrative will become that the Flyers manage their players right and know how to handle each situation on a case-by-case basis.
And you are better off banking on that outcome than you are risking losing the player and looking like there is a disconnect with the organization somewhere.
The one thing that can be assured is this is well thought out and well-conceived. These decisions aren't made in a hurry, or in a vacuum. This decision on Kolosov has been in planning for a few weeks, at least.
And Briere deserves the slack to let it all play out first before any criticisms are truly lobbed his way.
