Flyers goalie prospect loaned to Matvei Michkov’s former KHL team

As one Flyers prospect leaves, another one enters.

Three weeks after it was announced that Matvei Michkov would be heading to North America to begin his NHL career with the Flyers, Egor Zavragin is heading to his countryman’s old squad.

Zavragin was acquired by SKA St. Petersburg from Yugra Khanty-Mansiysk of the Major Hockey League in May, and the Kontinental Hockey League club loaned the netminder to HC Sochi on Wednesday. This is a similar setup to that of Michkov, whom SKA loaned for the past two seasons to Sochi.

“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 when the young goalie was traded. “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.”

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A third-round pick in 2023 by the Flyers, the 6-foot-3, 183-pound goaltender spent this past season playing with Yugra in the second-highest league in Russia. He went 13-1-0 with a 1.60 goals-against average, a .943 save percentage, and three shutouts in 17 games. In the playoffs, Zavragin won four of eight games and posted a 2.11 GAA and a .933 save percentage. He also went 6-1-2 with a 1.63 GAA, a .945 save percentage, and two shutouts for the organization’s junior team.

“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. “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.”

Flahr said in May there was a good chance Zavragin would play for SKA’s second-tier team as the St. Petersburg-based squad is a powerhouse. But now with the loan to Sochi, there is a strong chance he’ll stick in the top-tier KHL and get considerable playing time as the club has one other goalie on its roster; Nikita Tulinov is listed on the team’s website and, according to Elite Prospects, has played only one KHL game in his career.

Sochi is also a good spot for the youngster as he’ll face top KHL talent on a weak team. Last season, Sochi gave up the most goals (254) in the 23-team league. Four goalies played for the club, including Tulinov, and Mikhail Berdin, who played in 50 of the team’s 68 games, and faced an average of 35 shots a night.

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Translation: Zavragin, while playing for the Sergei Zubov-coached squad, will get to hone his craft in preparation for joining the Flyers organization in a few years alongside fellow goalies Sam Ersson, Alexei Kolosov, Ivan Fedotov, and Carson Bjarnason.

“Kolosov is a little different than most of these [guys], probably a little smaller in terms of an NHL goalie, but he’s extremely athletic. I think Egor is a little more controlled, but he’s also athletic; he can make the athletic saves,” Flahr said. “[His] positioning and his reads and ability to handle traffic at a young age, playing with men, was really impressive. So just his base right now, where he’s at for getting stronger, more explosive and whatnot is pretty exciting.”

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Zavragin, who does not turn 19 until August, signed a three-year contract with SKA after his acquisition and is a few years away from making his NHL debut.

“I think, realistically, that was probably what we’re going to be looking at anyway; two, maybe three [years],” Flahr said.