The Calgary Flames’ incoming goaltender reminds them a bit of … their outgoing goaltender.
Not a bad thing.
The Flames believe that free-agent addition Ivan Prosvetov is ready to be a full-time NHL netminder.
First, the 26-year-old Russian will have to win a training-camp battle for the backup gig in Calgary, a job that opened up when Dan Vladar signed with the Philadelphia Flyers.
“He kind of reminds me a little bit of Vladar when we traded for him (in 2021),” said Flames director of goaltending Jordan Sigalet of Prosvetov, who was inked to a one-year, one-way contract with a cap hit of US$950,000. “He’s a guy who hasn’t popped yet, but I think he’s close to popping at the NHL level.
“We wanted another young and hungry guy who is still trying to prove himself, so that’s why we went down that road.”
Prosvetov’s resume so far shows two dozen NHL appearances — 13 with the Arizona Coyotes and 11 more with the Colorado Avalanche.
While the numbers weren’t especially pretty, he’s not the first masked man to receive a rude welcome from the best shooters on the planet.
Prosvetov returned home last season after being promised an opportunity to be the workhorse for CSKA Moscow of the KHL, but he remained on Sigalet’s radar.
The Flames’ newbie netminder is both big — he is listed at 6-foot-5 and 200 pounds — and athletic, which can be a heck of a combo. He has been working with one of Russia’s leading goalie coaches to add some structure to his game.
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This past winter, Prosvetov posted a 20-16-2 record with a 2.32 goals-against average and .920 save percentage.
“When I was signing with CSKA, I was told that’s going to be my role — the starting position — so I couldn’t pass that up,” he explained. “Because CSKA is one of the iconic teams in the world, with all the players they’ve had — (Boris) Mikhailov, (Sergei) Fedorov, (Pavel) Bure, (Vladislav) Tretiak. So to just be part of that team, it was huge.
“But to play NHL, that is the goal for every hockey player. I still had in the back of my mind that I’m still going to come back, if I want to.”
When Prosvetov opted out of his deal in Russia, he immediately became one of Calgary’s top targets in free agency.
He is the presumed frontrunner to serve as Dustin Wolf’s backup in 2025-26, although AHL all-star Devin Cooley will do his darnedest to change that.
Both Cooley and Prosvetov are signed to one-way contracts for the upcoming season. Both require waivers to be assigned to the Wranglers, a risk the Flames will have to take with whoever winds up as the third-stringer.
“I called Cools after the signing was announced and just said, ‘Nothing changes. The competition is wide open,’ ” Sigalet stressed. “We want those guys to push each other and fight for that job.
“I think both guys see the opportunity, so it should be a good competition at camp.”
Calgary Wranglers goaltender Devin Cooley stares down San Diego Gulls forward Nikita Nesterenko on a breakaway.
Opportunity is all that Prosvetov is asking for.
As a kid, he remembers watching highlight clips from Miikka Kiprusoff’s heyday with the Flames.
He had a photo of Martin Brodeur as the screensaver on his computer.
He lists Sergei Bobrovsky, Carey Price, Pekka Rinne and Semyon Varlamov as some of his other puck-stopping idols.
In addition to an NHL dream, the staff in Calgary are confident that Prosvetov has a big-league skill set. It’s the same sort of potential they saw in Vladar when he was stuck as third on the depth chart in Boston.
Now 27, Vladar could be the go-to goalie for the Flyers next season. He moved to the City of Brotherly Love on a two-year deal that carries an annual cap hit of US$3.35 million.
“I just think in the games that (Prosvetov) played over the last few seasons in the NHL, you saw a lot of good,” Sigalet said. “Maybe a little bit inconsistent, but you could see the talent there.
“He feels like he grew his game a lot in Russia and he wants an opportunity to have another chance and another kick at the can. When you talk to him, he wanted to go back and play a lot of games and work on his game, and he wanted to come back over when he felt like he was ready to step back into that level. We had a good conversation and he seems like a really mentally tough goaltender, and he has something to prove.”
Colorado Avalanche goaltender Ivan Prosvetov prepares for play to resume in the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers Saturday, Jan. 6, 2024, in Denver.
And now, a place to prove it.
“It’s huge — the chance to play in the best league in the world, with the best players,” Prosvetov said. “And in Canada, too. We call it the capital of hockey, right? So I’m really happy for another chance.”
After spending parts of five seasons in the AHL’s Pacific Division, Prosvetov needs no introduction to his potential partner-in-pads.
He tried to outduel Wolf in the minors. Now, he can’t wait to join forces with him.
“He was always a top guy in the American League and it was kind of just a matter of time until he was going to have his shot,” Prosvetov said of Wolf, the runner-up for the Calder Trophy. “Obviously, a great year by him last year.
“He’s definitely a great goalie. He moves really well, reads the play well, really skilled. And I’ve heard a lot of good things about him, so I really look forward to play with him and even learn something from him. I’ll just try to help him out, and he’s going to help me, if we’re goalie partners.”