Last Friday, Russian goalie Ivan Fedotov was detained and transferred to a remote military base for allegedly planning to evade military service. Despite publicly announcing his intentions to compete for a roster spot on the Philadelphia Flyers in May, the 25-year-old’s future is now uncertain.
Arrested at a St. Petersburg hockey rink on Friday, Fedotov was reportedly taken to an army enlistment office. Young Russian men are required to complete at least one year of military service, something Fedotov has not yet completed.
The Russian citizen was born in Finland, and in the past year, has won the K.H.L Championship and a silver medal for Russia during the 2022 Olympics. His current team, CSKA Moscow, reportedly still has traditional ties to the military, and is one of the top club teams in the K.H.L. With his CSKA Moscow contract expiring, Fedotov decided to sign an entry level contract with the Flyers on May 7th.
Chuck Fletcher, Philadelphia’s president of hockey operations and general manager, had noted at the time that “Ivan is a player we have followed closely and are very pleased with his development.”
Now, in the face of his detainment, Fletcher said in a statement that the Flyers “are aware of the reports and are investigating the situation.” Similarly, a spokesman for the N.H.L said that “the league was aware of the situation but would not comment further.”
Despite this all, the Russian Defense Ministry has not commented on Fedotov’s location. However, Russian newspaper Sports Express posted pictures of Fedotov at a Russian military base in Severodyinsky, a naval city on Russia’s northern coast on Monday.
When questioned about Fedotov’s situation on Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that they “have a draft in line with the law, so any emotional commentaries would be utterly inappropriate,” and that “There are certain reasons for deferments and various ways of undergoing military service for athletes.”
Sources:
– https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/01/sports/hockey/flyers-russia-fedotov-ukraine.html
– https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/flyers/flyers-goalie-ivan-fedotov-sent-military-base-northern-russia-report
– https://www.newsweek.com/iivan-fedotov-photo-philadelphia-flyers-nhl-player-russian-military-1721415
– https://www.cbssports.com/nhl/news/ivan-fedotov-flyers-goaltending-prospect-sent-to-remote-military-base-in-russia-per-report/
Arrested at a St. Petersburg hockey rink on Friday, Fedotov was reportedly taken to an army enlistment office. Young Russian men are required to complete at least one year of military service, something Fedotov has not yet completed.
The Russian citizen was born in Finland, and in the past year, has won the K.H.L Championship and a silver medal for Russia during the 2022 Olympics. His current team, CSKA Moscow, reportedly still has traditional ties to the military, and is one of the top club teams in the K.H.L. With his CSKA Moscow contract expiring, Fedotov decided to sign an entry level contract with the Flyers on May 7th.
Chuck Fletcher, Philadelphia’s president of hockey operations and general manager, had noted at the time that “Ivan is a player we have followed closely and are very pleased with his development.”
Now, in the face of his detainment, Fletcher said in a statement that the Flyers “are aware of the reports and are investigating the situation.” Similarly, a spokesman for the N.H.L said that “the league was aware of the situation but would not comment further.”
Despite this all, the Russian Defense Ministry has not commented on Fedotov’s location. However, Russian newspaper Sports Express posted pictures of Fedotov at a Russian military base in Severodyinsky, a naval city on Russia’s northern coast on Monday.
When questioned about Fedotov’s situation on Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that they “have a draft in line with the law, so any emotional commentaries would be utterly inappropriate,” and that “There are certain reasons for deferments and various ways of undergoing military service for athletes.”
Sources:
– https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/01/sports/hockey/flyers-russia-fedotov-ukraine.html
– https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/flyers/flyers-goalie-ivan-fedotov-sent-military-base-northern-russia-report
– https://www.newsweek.com/iivan-fedotov-photo-philadelphia-flyers-nhl-player-russian-military-1721415
– https://www.cbssports.com/nhl/news/ivan-fedotov-flyers-goaltending-prospect-sent-to-remote-military-base-in-russia-per-report/
