Getty Philadelphia Flyers and Team Russia goalie Ivan Fedotov
Hockey followers and Philadelphia Flyers fans around the world reading my words: this is not a drill.
Nine years after getting drafted by the Flyers, Russian goalie Ivan Fedotov, 27 years old, is finally set to join the NHL franchise for the remainder of the 2024 season, according to multiple reports (SportsNet, The Athletic, ESPN) emerging on Thursday, March 28.
CSKA have terminated Ivan Fedotov’s two-year contract after the first season.
Fedotov’s club in the Russian Kontinental Hockey League, CSKA Moscow, announced the abrupt termination of his contract earlier on Thursday, allowing him to join the NHL after the Flyers drafted him with a seventh-round pick in 2015.
The main reason for the termination, as teased by NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman shortly after the official announcement made by CSKA, is the possibility of Fedotov joining the Flyers as early as this week and for the remainder of the regular season, allowing him to help Philadelphia in their run to make the playoffs.
Ivan Fedotov Can Play for Philadelphia Immediately
According to a source talking to The Athletic, “Fedotov is expected to join the Flyers before the end of the season.” On top of that, the NHL confirmed the outlet that “there are no issues or roadblocks to Fedotov joining or playing for the Flyers immediately.”
The report also mentions the Flyers are taking a cautious approach to the situation, which might delay any official announcement for at least a few hours or days.
“There’s high sensitivity here, given visa issues, the challenges getting a player out of Russia, and the history with this particular case,” The Athletic wrote, “which makes a formal announcement by the Flyers on Thursday unlikely.”
Fedotov has played for CSKA Moscow of the KHL this season following a legal battle with the IIHF last winter. Before signing a two-year deal with CSKA Moscow on July 2023, Fedotov was arrested by Russian authorities one year earlier, forcing him to serve mandatory military services and preventing him from joining the Flyers and the NHL, which was his initial plan.
This season, Fedotov put up a 21-22-1 regular-season record in the KHL posting a 2.37 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage. He played for the Russian Olympic Team in 2022, winning a silver medal as Russia finished as the runner-up of the mid-summer tournament.
Fedotov might join the Flyers for the remainder of the season and the playoffs if Philadelphia makes it there, but he will become an unrestricted free agent this summer if Philadelphia doesn’t sign him to an extension before July 1st, according to the current Collective Bargaining Agreement with the NHLPA, per Pro Hockey Rumors.
Flyers Will Have Plenty of Room (and Interest) In Landing Fedotov
The goalie situation in Philadelphia is precarious, to say the least. The Flyers should bring Fedotov and instantly name him their No. 1 goaltender for the remainder of the season without much hesitation.
Former Philadelphia netminder Carter Hart left the Flyers in mid-January for personal reasons, later revealed by TSN to be linked to the Hockey Canada sexual assault scandal. The franchise granted him an indefinite leave of absence, as announced on January 24. On February 5, the London Police Service announced that Hart had been charged with one count of sexual assault.
Since the last week of January, the Flyers have used a rotation of mainly two goalies, Samuel Ersson and Felix Sandstrom, with a brief cameo by Calvin Petersen in early February, according to data tracked by The Goaltender Home Page.
Sandstrom has played five games this season with a 1-2-0 record averaging 3.87 goals against and a .823 SV%. Ersson has been a bit better, with a still-mediocre 21-14-7 record in 43 games averaging 2.75 goals against and posting a .895 SV%.
The Flyers face the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday, March 28, boasting a 36-27-10 record and having 82 points through 73 games. They are still third in the Metropolitan Division by only one point above fourth-place Washington (two games in hand).