Aleksei Kolosov’s newfound presence, Alex Bump’s third-period surge, and other Flyers preseason takeaways

The Flyers headed north of the border Tuesday for a matchup with the Montreal Canadiens in the second of seven preseason games.

Fielding a roster with 13 skaters who have played at least one NHL game, including captain Sean Couturier, Bobby Brink, and defensemen Nick Seeler and Travis Sanheim, the Flyers started slowly, as everyone but Rodrigo Ābols and Aleksei Kolosov was playing for the first time. They picked things up and kept it close but couldn’t finish the comeback.

Here are four observations from the Flyers’ 4-2 loss to the Canadiens:

Kolosov continues to be solid in net. On Sunday, he allowed two goals on 17 shots — one goal off a two-on-one — but looked more controlled, focused, and compact in his movements. An athletic goalie, he played the final 39-plus minutes Tuesday after Sam Ersson gave up two goals — one on a three-on-two to Montreal’s Cole Caufield, and the other from Florian Xhekaj after a defensive-zone miscue.

Coach Rick Tocchet said pregame that Ersson would play the whole game, but, according to the radio call, he misspoke. Against Montreal, Kolosov faced 13 shots and allowed one goal, a shot by Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki that went over the shoulder with two Flyers sticks in the mix. Otherwise, he moved and squared up well, including on a tricky shot by Lane Hutson on the power play that trickled wide, and he stayed at the top of the crease with minimal movement to stone Alexandre Carrier as he crashed the net.

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With a power play filled with NHL regulars, the Flyers notched one goal on four chances. Tocchet told The Inquirer in May that he wants “an attack style” with creativity and doesn’t want the man advantage to be stagnant. On Friday, he reiterated it, saying, “Sometimes power plays are robotic. … I think we’ve got to let these guys be carefree, but there are also concepts.”

The power play didn’t look terrible on Tuesday, but it still was too perimeter-bound and, according to Natural Stat Trick, mustered six shot attempts, three of which were on goal with only one being from a high-danger spot. Several passes were missed, which would have led to more Grade A chances. The lone goal, cited as low-danger, came off the stick of Owen Tippett from the left faceoff circle.

Alex Bump started the game on a line with Jett Luchanko and Nick Deslauriers, but by the second period, he was alongside Couturier and Brink. When that line was on the ice, the Flyers had 66.67% of the shot attempts, compared to 33.33% when he skated with his original group. And while Bump started slowly like his teammates, the young winger picked it up as the game wore on and stood out in the third period.

With the Flyers down, 3-2, he took an outlet pass from Couturier, skated in, deked, and just missed putting it past Canadiens goalie Kaapo Kahkonen. A few minutes later, Brink fired a shot off a faceoff, and Bump pounced on the rebound but was stopped. Bump used his stick to get into passing lanes and break up chances for the opposition defensively, but he also maintained control and created opportunities offensively. According to Natural Stat Trick, he led the Flyers in individual shot attempts (six), scoring chances (four), high-danger chances (two), and rebound attempts (two) at five-on-five.

Anthony Richard had two call-ups last year, and the first one in November was impressive. In seven games, he notched six points (two goals, four assists). His second call-up wasn’t as productive, but there is no denying what he brings to the ice: speed. Although his name hasn’t been mentioned as much this year, like last year’s training camp, he got on the board Tuesday, flying past the Canadiens defense.

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After Dennis Gilbert intercepted a centering pass deep in the Flyers’ end, he sent the puck out and off Montreal defenseman David Reinbacher — who was selected two spots above Matvei Michkov in the 2023 draft — and Richard turned on the jets, getting behind Reinbacher and Tobie Paquette-Bisson. Overall, Richard was noticeable, which is critical right now, using his speed to push back the defense and on the forecheck.

Luchanko showed off his speed with a rush up the ice that began in his own end before dishing to Bump for the zone entry. It showed what the 19-year-old, who had an otherwise quiet night and a turnover that led to the empty-netter, can do with his legs as he pushed the defense back. … Sanheim played 25 minutes, 50 seconds in his first game of the preseason. … Matthew Gard, who was elevated from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms group after Karsen Dorwart was injured, made his preseason debut. The 2025 draft pick played 11:11 and had one shot and one hit. … Deslauriers dropped the gloves with Florian Xhekaj, not his brother, Arber, who is known for being a fighter. … Defensemen Hunter McDonald and Luke Tuch also earned five-minute penalties for fighting. … The Flyers’ next preseason game is Thursday when they travel to Hershey to play the Washington Capitals at 7 p.m.

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