While a lot of attention was diverted towards goaltenders like Alexei Kolosov and the NHL tandem of Samuel Ersson and Ivan Fedotov – for good measure – another prospect within the Philadelphia Flyers pipeline was carving his way up the hierarchy with another tremendous showing in Yegor Zavragin.
The 3rd-round pick from 2023 NHL Entry Draft has done nothing but impress since his draft year and with the recent news of his recall back to SKA St. Petersburg, it has brought about a whole new narrative for the 19-year-old prospect.
The Flyers and their fanbase have been all too familiar with SKA St. Petersburg in recent years due to players like Matvei Michkov and even Ivan Demidov to a certain degree. It is generally well known that prospects don’t usually thrive in the KHL due to their insistence of playing veterans in high-leverage situations, which would explain Michkov being loaned to HK Sochi despite all the hype, flair, and potential.
Zavragin ironically enough was loaned out to Sochi earlier this summer but was just recalled back to St. Petersburg after an amazing start to his season.
Dating back to 2021-22, Zavragin spent the majority of his time in the MHL, which is Russia’s equivalent to the CHL or NCAA; in essence their junior league. He posted a 20-4-2 record with a 2.13 GAA and a .930 SV% in 2021-22 for Mamonty Ugry of the MHL. The following year he went 11-6-1 with a .920 SV% and a 2.49 GAA before splitting time between the MHL and the VHL – the second highest league in the circuit. He went 13-1-0 with a .943 SV% and a 1.60 GAA in 17 games in the VHL en route to being named VHL Rookie of the Year, as well as putting on a 6-1-2 showing in the MHL in just 9 contests which led to his eventual promotion to the VHL.
This year he was up to his old tricks as he posted a .941 SV% and a 2.21 GAA with 1 shutout in 6 games for Sochi, despite only holding a 3-3-0 record. SKA St. Petersburg are currently 8-4-1 to start the season and have 2 goaltenders on the roster in Artemy Pleshkov (7-3-0; .923 SV%; 2.63 GAA) and Nikita Serebryakov (1-2-0; .874 SV%; 3.70 GAA). It’s conceivable to think that Zavragin could take over as the full-time backup goaltender with Serebryakov having subpar numbers to begin the campaign.
Not much was known about Zavragin heading into the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, partially because of the lack of scouts in Russia at the time and their ban from IIHF tournaments. However, in just a matter of a calendar year, the Novosibirsk native has the potential to not only be the Flyers’ brightest star, but also one of the league’s best goaltending prospects – if not the best.
He may just be 19 years of age and he’s only got 6 games of KHL experience under his belt, but everything we’ve seen up to this point would indicate he’s on the right path.
The Flyers are also currently in a great position when it comes to their future in between the pipes with Ersson setting himself up as the 1A of the NHL tandem, Fedotov finally getting a longer look at the NHL level after years in the KHL, Kolosov currently with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms after a topsy-turvy summer, and Carson Bjarnason developing in the WHL with the Brandon Wheat Kings.
Zavragin is under contract with SKA St. Petersburg until May 31st, 2027, so he will have plenty of time to develop his game before making his eventual leap to the North American professional circuit. There is also very little need to rush him or perhaps work out a contract termination with the club considering his age, the Flyers’ current NHL tandem being signed for the next 2 seasons, and Kolosov and Bjarnason being around.
Zavragin was given some run during his first contest with SKA St. Petersburg after they were down 3-0 at the end of two periods. He came in relief and while SKA almost pulled off the comeback, they fell just short with a 4-2 defeat against Dinamo Minsk. Zavragin allowed 1 goal on 4 shots in his relief appearance.
Playing for SKA St. Petersburg will do wonders for his development and he would be following in the footsteps of fellow SKA alums in Igor Shesterkin and Yaroslav Askarov, who are each touted as one of the NHL’s best netminders and one of the NHL’s top goaltending prospects, respectively.
