Ruling on Flyers prospect Ivan Fedotov only intensifies tension between U.S., Russia
It appears Ivan Fedotov’s yearlong quest to come to North America will finally happen after the International Ice Hockey Federation ruled on Monday that the 26-year-old goalie had a valid contract with the Philadelphia Flyers — one that supersedes the one he signed with the KHL earlier this year, per multiple reports.
Fedotov, who planned to play for the Flyers organization last season, was stopped from leaving Russia in July 2022 and transported by law enforcement officials to a remote Russian military base to finish out his mandatory military service.
Despite signing a two-year deal with CKSA Moscow one month ago, the IIHF, which is the governing board of professional hockey, ruled that the one-year contract Fedotov signed with the Flyers in May 2022, which was tolled to this year, negates his KHL deal because it breeched international transfer regulations due to the Flyers not granting Fedotov a release from his contract, according to the Associated Press.
Because IIHF regulations were broken, CSKA was handed a one-year ban on international transfers, and Fedotov was given a four-month KHL suspension beginning with CSKA’s regular-season opener on Sept. 1 and running through the end of the calendar year. Should he play for the Flyers this season, Fedotov’s suspension will not carry over to the NHL.
Fedotov’s situation is just the latest chapter in the strained relationship between the United States and Russia due to a volatile political climate after the latter declared war on the Ukraine last year.
The NHL has since cut off ties with the KHL, making it increasingly difficult for Russian-born players to move to North America to play for the NHL teams that drafted them.
Highly regarded prospects like Nashville Predators goalie Yaroslav Askarov and Columbus Blue Jackets forward Kirill Marchenko, plus Minnesota Wild leading scorer Kirill Kaprizov, have had their share of issues over the last year trying to leave Russia for the U.S.
Several Russian players have seen their draft stocks take hits over the last two seasons due to the rift between the NHL and KHL. Most recently, projected top-three pick Matvei Michkov, who plays for SKA Saint Petersburg, fell to the Flyers with the seventh overall pick due to concerns about his KHL commitment. The same happened last year with Danila Yurov, a projected top-10 pick who plays for Metallurg in the KHL, who fell to the Minnesota Wild with the 24th overall pick.
Additionally, the KHL has been known to punish any player believed to want to leave for the NHL by having his playing time reduced. (See Askarov in 2022.) It was reported last month that the league will also ban any players who leave the KHL with valid NHL contracts for several years.
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