At the core of every great hockey team is a stalwart goaltender who protects the net and their team with their very life. Goalies aren’t simply there to make saves whenever the defense allows a shot on goal. They’re leaders, motivators and even heroes.
Penn State knows this all too well. With the 2024-25 season having some of the lowest lows and ending on the highest note in program history, none of its success could have been achieved without its talented netminders.
Starting goaltender Arsenii Sergeev was originally a transfer-portal acquisition from the University of Connecticut. Although he was a Husky before he was a Nittany Lion, Sergeev’s impact on Happy Valley was nothing short of monumental.
“The magnitude is really large for one season,” coach Guy Gadowsky said about Sergeev’s impact on the season. “He was only here for one year, but he’s just so Penn State in just how classy and grateful he is and how hard he competes.”
Sergeev finished with a .919 save percentage and 2.54 goals-against-average, manning the goal-crease in 33 games throughout the season. Instrumental to Penn State’s journey to the Frozen Four in St. Louis, a program first, Sergeev’s play landed him a contract with the NHL’s Calgary Flames.
“(Arsenii’s) just a very lovable guy that happens to compete extremely hard,” Gadowsky said.
But for five games, the crease was held by an unlikely backup. Previously the goaltender for the Penn State Ice Lions of the ACHA, John Seifarth was given an opportunity to be the third-string following a successful walk-on tryout.
In late November, Seifarth stepped up when the blue and white needed him most as Sergeev was sidelined due to a lower-body injury.
In his first series as a starter, Seifarth and company swept Colgate at Pegula Ice Arena, earning the No. 2 spot on SportsCenter’s Top 10 when he reached behind his back to make a save with his stick. Following two losses to Ohio State, Seifarth ended his stretch with a victory over Army at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.
“(Seifarth’s story) gets me every time,” Gadowsky said. “It’s amazing to think that, if it wasn’t for that, none of this might’ve happened. There’s a lot of people who realize how special that was.”
With the starting role up for grabs, the coaching staff looked through various avenues to find goalies with the ability to fill Sergeev’s skates. In the end, Penn State signed Josh Fleming from the QMJHL and Kevin Reidler from Nebraska-Omaha.
Fleming finished his 2024-25 season playing 53 games for the Acadie-Bathurst Titans, recording a .908 save percentage and 3.08 goals-against-average.
“(Coach Pagliero) speaks very highly of his technique,” Gadowsky said about Fleming. “And he happens to be a really, really good guy as well.”
Reidler played eight games with the Mavericks, finishing with a 4-1 record while sporting a .920 save percentage and 2.74 goals-against-average. Drafted by the Ottawa Senators in the fifth round of the 2022 NHL Draft, Reidler has already drawn comparisons to Sergeev.
“I hate to put this on (Reidler), but he’s sort of like ‘Arsenii 2.0’ because we wanted to get a guy that was just a really great, popular teammate,” Gadowsky said. “He’s similar to Arsenii. He’s very tall, he competes, he’s a little aggressive, but I think the thing that puts us over the top with him is what everybody said about him as a teammate.”
As Sergeev’s departure closes one chapter, the arrival of both Fleming and Reidler opens another. With a fresh goaltending tandem ready to inherit the Frozen Four legacy, Penn State’s net remains in promising hands.
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