Ivan Fedotov is finally, officially, a member of the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Russian goaltender has arrived in North America, the NHL club announced Friday. Shortly thereafter, Fedotov met with reporters alongside Flyers general manager Daniel Briere.
“I’m so excited to be here. It has been a difficult two years.”
— Jordan Hall (@JHallNBCS) March 29, 2024
- Ivan Fedotov, who said he wants to help Flyers push for playoffs pic.twitter.com/UPaLhBTFRb
Briere said head coach John Tortorella will decide whether Fedotov plays over the rest of this season, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer's Jackie Spiegel. The GM added that the netminder is on the roster while Felix Sandstrom has been returned to their AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
The NHL informed the Flyers that Fedotov is eligible to play in the postseason, Briere said, per PHLY Sports' Charlie O'Connor. The GM also noted Samuel Ersson is still the team's No. 1 goaltender.
On Thursday, KHL squad CSKA Moscow terminated Fedotov's contract. CSKA signed him to a two-year agreement last July, so it ended the deal with one year remaining. He also has an active contract with the Flyers that expires July 1, making him a pending unrestricted free agent.
Briere doesn't anticipate much difficulty in signing Fedotov to a contract extension.
"It's something that we're working on," the GM said Friday. "I don't expect it to be an issue."
The puck-stopper played this season in Europe in defiance of an IIHF ruling in favor of the NHL and the Flyers in August.
The IIHF determined Fedotov had a valid NHL contract for the 2023-24 season when he signed with CSKA. The ruling was expected to open the door for the 27-year-old to play with the Flyers, but he opted to remain in Russia.
He signed the contract with the Flyers in May 2022 but was taken to a Russian military base two months later to serve. Philadelphia then tolled the pact over to this season.
Fedotov has spent parts of seven campaigns in the KHL and his last two with CSKA. He went 21-22-1 with a .914 save percentage across 44 games during this regular season and then 1-4 with a .916 mark in the playoffs. Lokomotiv Yaroslavl eliminated CSKA in five games in the first round.
The Flyers drafted Fedotov 188th overall in 2015.
Ersson has shouldered the bulk of the workload in Philadelphia's crease this season. He's struggled to a degree with an .895 save percentage, along with a 21-15-7 record. Sandstrom and Cal Petersen have played five games apiece. Carter Hart is on leave from the team after being charged in the 2018 world junior sexual assault case.
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