Ivan Fedotov Update

Ivan Fedotov 25, the Finnish-born Russian goalie who was bound to serve behind Carter Hart next season, was arrested in St. Petersburg last month for «evading military service» following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. He was ordered to serve in the Russian Navy. According to the Moscow Times, members of the CSKA club in the KHL (which Fedotov played for), are considered military personnel and are subject to enlistment between 18-27 years old. Fedotov was taken to the enlistment office where he became ill and was sent to the hospital. He is currently being detained in the Arctic at a Russian Naval base.

In April, Fedotov announced he'd be leaving CSKA to pursue his NHL career with the Flyers, who drafted him in the seventh round of the 2015 entry draft. A month later, he signed a 1-year entry-level contract.

The lawyer for Ivan Fedotov, who was NHL-bound before being detained outside a St. Petersburg hockey rink, asked a court in the Leningrad region Thursday to revoke a decision by the draft board that led to the player being forced into the Russian militaryhttps://t.co/O0UBOsNPzj— Hockey Night in Canada (@hockeynight) August 12, 2022

The 6-foot-7, 205 lb. goaltender dominated as the starting goalie for the Russian team in the Winter Olympics and led them to the silver medal with a 1.61 GAA, a .942 SV% and a 4-2 record.


Fedotov's trial began yesterday, after his lawyer, Alexei Ponomarev, filed a lawsuit against his conscription. Ponomarev is suing on grounds that Fedotov was drafted in St. Petersburg even though he doesn't live there, which he believes to be illegal. He lives outside the city and is registered in Moscow. Fedotov's preliminary hearing is scheduled for September 20th. If he is found not guilty of evading the military, Fedotov will be sent back to hopefully fill the #2 goalie spot for the Flyers.

Preliminary hearing in the Ivan Fedotov case has been scheduled for September 20.

His lawyer was in court today for 17 minutes. pic.twitter.com/9gdWOPov7o— Hockey News Hub (@HockeyNewsHub) August 11, 2022