Russian KHL club SKA St. Petersburg recalls Flyers goalie prospect Egor Zavragin

Zavragin, 19, was fantastic in six KHL games while on loan at lowly Sochi (.941 save percentage). SKA must feel he can help the team now, which is another positive development for the Flyers prospect.

by Gustav Elvin

Published Oct. 9, 2024, 12:05 p.m. ET

It’s a massive week for the future of the Flyers, as potential franchise pillars Matvei Michkov and Jett Luchanko will make their NHL debuts on Friday in Vancouver. Wednesday brought another major development, as Russian goalie prospect Egor Zavragin was recalled from his loan at Sochi by parent club SKA St. Petersburg.

The move, announced on X by SKA, comes after a scintillating start to Zavragin’s career in the Kontinental Hockey League. The 19-year-old posted a 3-3 record with a .941 save percentage and a shutout in six games with basement-dwelling Sochi, the same team that Michkov played for on loan the last two seasons. SKA recalling Zavragin likely means it has plans to play him in some capacity this season, which would be a rarity for such a young goaltender at a prestigious Russian club. SKA loaned Zavragin to fellow KHL club Sochi for the season in July to get him more guaranteed game time and KHL experience. But by recalling him from his loan early, SKA clearly has been impressed enough to believe Zavragin could help the team right now.

Zavragin joins an SKA team that counts Artemi Pleshkov and Nikita Serebryakov among its goaltenders. Pleshkov, 21, has outplayed the 28-year-old Serebryakov this season and has appeared in 12 of SKA’s 13 games. The Flyers prospect likely will compete with Serebryakov for the backup role behind Pleshkov, at least to start. SKA’s roster also features former Flyers Tony DeAngelo of Sewell and Mikhail Vorobyev, as well as Evgeny Kuznetsov, who won a Stanley Cup with Washington in 2018.

The Flyers remain extremely high on Zavragin, whom the team selected in the third round of the 2023 draft (No. 87 overall) with a pick they acquired from the New York Rangers in a trade for defenseman Justin Braun. Drafted 36 picks after fellow Flyers goalie prospect Carson Bjarnason, Zavragin has at least closed the gap, if he hasn’t already surpassed Bjarnason, in the organization’s goalie pecking order.

Zavragin posted a ridiculous .943 save percentage in 17 games — and a .933 save percentage in eight playoff games — last season for Yugra of the VHL, the second-highest professional league in Russia. His regular-season save percentage was the second best ever by a 20-or-under goalie (minimum 16 games), behind only Igor Shesterkin’s .954 save percentage in 2015-16 with SKA’s farm club. Shesterkin won the Vezina Trophy for the Rangers in 2022.

“He’s exceeded our expectations, I think this year, just his performance at the pro level and in junior level for a young guy,” Flyers assistant general manager Brent Flahr told The Inquirer in May. “So I know he’s put himself kind of on the scene there in Russia. ... He’s big. He’s athletic, plays a very mature game for a young guy as far as his positional play and whatnot.”

While the 6-foot-2 Zavragin is probably still a few years away — he has a contract with SKA through the 2026-27 season — the Flyers have to be excited about his play.

“Our goalie guys Kim [Dillabaugh, goaltending coach] and Brady [Robinson, goaltender development] have been very excited about him and have spoken to his goalie coaches and agents. So we’ve been in touch with them,” Flahr said in May. “We’re really excited. Obviously, being in Russia, they do a very good job of producing goalies, as you see in the NHL right now. And the timeline for us makes sense, too, [as] he’s a young kid.”

Flyers fans weren’t necessarily thrilled with how Michkov was treated by SKA the last few seasons, but the Russian team’s recent goaltending history speaks for itself with Shesterkin, Yaroslav Askarov (San Jose), and Pyotr Kochetkov (Carolina) coming through the pipeline before reaching the NHL.

The Flyers’ goaltending situation took a significant hit with Carter Hart leaving the team amid sexual assault charges in January, but the Flyers have younger options at the NHL level and some depth in the system. The team will start the season with Sam Ersson, 24, and Ivan Fedotov, 27, as the NHL tandem with talented 22-year-old Alexei Kolosov behind them. Kolosov is in Lehigh Valley after changing his mind and reporting to camp late after a summer full of speculation regarding his future. Down the road, the Flyers have highly regarded teenagers Zavragin and Bjarnason continuing to develop.