Junior goaltender Arsenii Sergeev became the 12th Nittany Lion in program history to put pen to paper on an NHL contract as he signed a two-year, entry-level deal with the Calgary Flames the club announced on Monday afternoon.

Sergeev, who had his best collegiate seasons and one of the best seasons by a Nittany Lion net-minder all-time, joins Alex Limoges (Washington), Aarne Talvitie (New Jersey), Peyton Jones (Colorado), Cole Hults (Los Angeles), Evan Barratt (Chicago), Nate Sucese (Arizona), Brandon Biro (Buffalo), Andrew Sturtz (Ottawa), Casey Bailey (Toronto), Eamon McAdam (New York Islanders) and Vince Pedrie (New York Rangers) who also agreed to NHL contracts following their time at Penn State.

“We are extremely happy for Arsi signing a well-deserved NHL contract with Calgary,” head coach Guy Gadowsky said. “He was a great player on the ice, but made an even greater impact to our program and our locker room off the ice. Arsenii is such a fun lovable competitive teammate, and he will surely be missed, but he has a home at Penn State forever.” 

Sergeev backstopped Penn State to its first-ever Frozen Four while becoming the first Nittany Lion goaltender to earn a spot on either the All-B1G first or second team after landing second team honors back in March. The Yaroslavl, Russia native turned in one of the best goaltending seasons in Penn State history, posting a 19-9-4 record with a .919 save percentage and a 2.54 goals-against average and four shutouts. Sergeev’s 19 wins this season tied for the top spot in the Big Ten and are tied for the second-most in a single-season by a Nittany Lion net-minder with his save percentage and goals-against average each ranking third-best while his four shutouts are a new Penn State single-season record as well as tied for the career standard and also paced the Big Ten and ranked tied for fourth nationally.

Sergeev leaves Hockey Valley as the program’s all-time leader in save percentage (.919), goals-against average (2.54), winning percentage (.679) and is tied for the lead in shutouts (4) while his 19 wins are good for fifth all-time. Sergeev was also named Big Ten First Star of the Week on three separate occasions becoming the lone Nittany Lion to earn three or more First Star recognitions in the same season.

“Before I got to Penn State, I was nervous about what it would be like, but, now, I’ve made memories, friendships, and a second family that I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life,” Sergeev said. “The coaching staff here and my teammates have made me a better player on the ice and a better person off the ice and I am forever grateful for my time in Hockey Valley.”