Russian goalie Ivan Fedotov could be taking a step toward finally starting his NHL career after his KHL contract was terminated on Thursday, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported.
Fedotov, who was playing for CSKA Moscow — despite having a contract with the Flyers and in defiance of an International Ice Hockey Federation ruling in August — has had his Russian contract terminated, according to a tweet by the Russian league.
The 27-year-old, six-foot-seven goalie was drafted by the Flyers in 2015 and signed a one-year deal with the club in May 2022. In July 2022, however, he was stopped from leaving his country for allegedly evading military service and missed the entirety of the 2022-23 season.
The Flyers then had the contract they’d signed with Fedotov “tolled” until the start of the 2023-24, only for CSKA Moscow to announce it had signed the goalie to a new, two-year deal in July. The Flyers appealed that ruling to the IIHF, which determined in August that CSKA Moscow’s deal had breached regulations because the player held a valid contract with the NHL club. The IIHF denied CSKA and Fedotov’s appeal of that ruling in December.
The Finnish-born Russian national went 21-22-1 this season with CSKA, posting a 2.57 goals-against average and .916 save percentage.
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