In a surprising development from the Kontinental Hockey League, CSKA Moscow has terminated the contract of Philadelphia Flyers’ goalie prospect Ivan Fedotov. The reasoning became clear shortly thereafter, as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman confirmed that Fedotov would finish his season with the Flyers.
The news comes as a bit of a shock, as only seven months ago, the KHL, NHL and IIHF held a lengthy battle over Fedotov's contractual rights for the 2023-24 season. As it would turn out, under pressure from his native country, Fedotov would spend most of his year in the KHL.
After the announcement became public from CSKA Moscow, it was unclear if Fedotov would be coming to Philadelphia. The team's general manager, Daniel Briere, declined to comment at Thursday’s media availability regarding Fedotov’s status. Nevertheless, as a precursor to Friedman’s confirmation, Sports Express in Russia initially reported that Fedotov would be leaving for the NHL.
With only one year remaining on his current contract, Fedotov will become an unrestricted free agent this summer if Philadelphia does not sign him to an extension before July 1. In the league’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement with the NHLPA, a player can hit the unrestricted free agent market once they hit 27 years of age or have accrued seven years of experience at the NHL level.
Although there will be a bit of an adjustment coming over to North American hockey, Fedotov should be able to play himself into the starting role with the Flyers relatively quickly. In 44 games for CSKA Moscow this season, Fedotov produced a 21-22-1 record but did carry an impressive .914 save percentage and 2.37 goals against average.
Since Carter Hart left the team in late January, Philadelphia has been operating with Samuel Ersson as their starting option, with Calvin Petersen and Felix Sandstrom seeing time in the backup role. Proving to be a volatile option, Ersson has produced a 9-8-4 record in 21 games with a .880 SV% after taking over the top job.
Still trying to lock down a playoff spot with nine games remaining, the Flyers could get quite the jolt with Fedotov between the pipes. However, even if the team cannot secure a playoff spot, they could view it as an important trial run to see if they would like to continue their relationship with the netminder.
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