The Olympic break's nearly over, and we've got one last part of the Philadelphia Flyers' roster to grade: the goaltenders. Calling the Flyers' goaltending trio a "mixed bag" may be the understatement of the year, as the Flyers have found a starting-caliber goalie in Dan Vladar, but neither Sam Ersson nor Aleksei Kolosov have been able to prove themselves even remotely reliable in a backup role. Let's get into it.
Dan Vladar: A-
Vladar's Team Czechia may've been eliminated in a heartbreaking game against Team Canada, and he only got one start at the Olympics, but he's got a case for being the Flyers' 2025-26 MVP. The Flyers have been desperate for a goaltender--any goaltender--to give them even close to league average goaltending. In the moment, there was some head scratching over GM Danny Briere's signing of Vladar during the offseason but, in the 33 games he's played since joining the Flyers, the two-year, $3.35-million AAV contract looks like a steal.
While the Flyers fell of a cliff in the last month leading into the Olympic break (in part due to a Vladar injury), Vladar's still proven reliable in a starter's role. He's sitting at a .905 SV% and 2.47 GAA, and his 8.00 Goals Saved Above expected (GSAx) is 18th in the league, per Money Puck. Despite some shakiness in January from Vladar, he's fully earned an "A" grade on the back of his full season performance.
Aleksei Kolosov: D
Kolosov's only played four games this season--and only started two--so perhaps we're being a little unfair to give him a grade. However, in the minutes he has played, he's not been great, posting minus-4 GSAx, an .830 SV%, and 4.00 GAA. At 24 years old, he's still pretty young by goaltending standards, so it's always possible he turns into a respectable backup in a few years. It's clear, though, that he still needs a lot of work to get there, and will be best served spending even more time with the Phantoms next year.
Sam Ersson: F
And on the opposite end, we have Sam Ersson. It has been a disastrous season for the 26-year old Swede, whose minus-18.1 GSAx is the second worst in the league; his .856 SV% is the worst in the league among NHL netminders with five games minimum played. This is his third season in a full-time NHL role, and it's becoming abundantly clear he just might not be an NHL-caliber goalie. It's the final season of his $1.45-million AAV bridge deal, and he'll be an arbitration-eligible RFA this summer--but it would not be a surprise to see the Flyers let him walk as a free agent. Maybe he can build a little momentum down the stretch in the eight or so games he will get as a backup (barring another Vladar injury), but that handful of games shouldn't be enough to outweigh Ersson's larger body of work.