Flyers goaltender Ivan Fedotov has been arrested in Russia, reports Sport-Express’ Alexey Shevchenko. The issue appears to pertain to the netminder’s mandatory military service which has not been fulfilled. Fedotov left his contract with CSKA Moscow to sign a one-year deal with Philadelphia back in May. That team is owned by the Russian army (the A in CSKA stands for Army) with its players being considered military personnel so his departure could be classified as a breach of contract. On the surface, that could put his NHL plans on hold for next season which could have the Flyers back on the hunt for a backup goaltender as the 25-year-old was widely expected to be Carter Hart’s backup next season after being a finalist for the KHL’s top goaltender in 2021-22. GM Chuck Fletcher released the following statement on the matter to Oliver Reiner of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link):
We’re aware of the reports and are investigating the situation. We have no further comment at this time.
More from the Metropolitan:
- Hurricanes winger Nino Niederreiter will test the open market when it opens up on July 13th, his agent Andre Rufener told Pierre LeBrun in his latest piece for The Athletic (subscription link). Rufener didn’t rule out the possibility of Carolina re-signing him but the 29-year-old will see what’s out there first. Niederreiter is coming off his second straight season of at least 20 goals which should have his market somewhere close to the $5.25MM he had on his set-to-expire contract.
- As the Rangers look to find their second-line center for next season, Larry Brooks of the New York Post reports that they have shifted their focus to the trade market. He notes that the team was unable to meet the asking price of Ryan Strome, their second-line pivot for the past four seasons, or Andrew Copp, their prominent trade deadline acquisition. New York has been linked to Jets center Pierre-Luc Dubois although, with just $11MM in cap space per CapFriendly with several roster spots to be filled, it would be difficult for them to afford Dubois’ next contract – he’s a pending restricted free agent – onto their books as it will undoubtedly come in higher than what Strome and Copp receive.
Leave it to the Flyers to come up with yet another twist in the bizarre soap opera of their goaltending. Where will they get their next backup? FBI’s Most Wanted list?
Since you seem to have spent more time on this than most, please explain how this is the fault of the Flyers organization. Thanks.
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Could Niederreiter land in LA, play alongside countryman FIala??
NYR trades Panarin to NYI or NJ and then they have all kinds of room for PLD and Copp!
… only to open up a far bigger hole in their lineup.
Y’know, I bet there’s scope for a person with time on their hands to do a projected team-by-team survey: what cap space they have left, what RFAs they hope to sign, how many contracts they need to fill, who’s available, and what their expected market rates are.
Because this strikes me as a giant game of Musical Chairs: who’s re-signing whom, who wants X money, who has the money to spend, what players are willing to settle for the Arizonas and Seattles, what players are wagering that the Detroits and Anaheims are ready to get back into contention.
So I wonder whether a Rangers team might not be better off sitting on their hands until August, and seeing who might be out there who was left standing when the music stopped, and would rather take $2MM AAV less or a shorter term to play for a contender, instead of playing in a glorified practice rink in Tempe.
Seems like you and your buddies are talking fantasy league trades after a jug of whiskey.
While I’d normally agree with your response to a silly statement like that – it may only be silly on the surface…hear me out.
Rangers have what can be three lines, but need that true second line center. They’re three deep on LW and LaF isn’t going to grow getting third line minutes.
Furthermore, despite Panarin’s talents on offense, he turned the puck over way too much in the playoffs that were costly and didn’t shot enough until Tampa. Kreider isn’t going anywhere and LaF has a manageable salary for the next few years. Got the new kid coming up – Othmann who plays LW and can fill that 3rd line role. RW you’ve got Kravstov and Kakko, with an opening on the third line ride side that can be filled relatively easy.
Now comes the potential – NJD for example have some depth at center that is talented. Hughes, or realistically Hischier would be the perfect strategy for the Rangers near and long term while NJD gets their LW to pair on the top line with Hughes. Devils can do it monetarily and the Rangers can certainly do it as well. Sprinkle in Jones or Lundqvist if necessary, but too much salary in the left side going potentially three lines deep isn’t the smart play. If someone needs to move, it would be Panarin in my opinion. And I’d typically say Trouba, but he stepped up big this year and earned that salary.
That would be quite a loss if the Rangers can’t keep Copp around.
CSKA is not owned by Russian army (that used to be the case during the times of Soviet Union) but by Russian oil company (Rosneft) which is owned by Russian government.
Sounds like someone in government wanted to send a “message” to Russian hockey players