International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) after several months of silence made a statement regarding the case of the Russian goalkeeper of CSKA Moscow Ivan Fedotov. In short, the goalkeeper’s disqualification was left in force, as well as the ban on the army team making international transfers.
To understand the situation, let’s remember its brief chronology:
- In the spring of 2022, Fedotov signed a rookie contract with the National Hockey League (NHL) Philadelphia Flyers, but was unable to take part in the 2022/23 season due to military service in the Russian Army. For this period, the contract was “frozen” and automatically extended for the 2023/24 season.
- In the summer of 2023, Fedotov, having served in the army, signed a contract with CSKA. The agreement was registered by the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
- The NHL and Philadelphia expressed their disagreement with this deal; the International Hockey Federation (IIHF) got involved in the matter, which, citing its regulations, declared Fedotov’s contract with CSKA invalid.
- By decision of the IIHF disciplinary body, Fedotov was disqualified for four months – from September 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023 – and CSKA was banned from making international transfers until August 10, 2024.
- Despite the disqualification, Fedotov was announced for CSKA in the new season. By the time of the pause in the KHL regular championship, he had played 23 matches, gained 12 wins and scored four shutouts, with a total of 91.7% of saved shots.
The KHL’s decision to allow Ivan Fedotov to play games for CSKA in the 2023/24 season, league president Alexei Morozov, speaking to reporters, explained the following:
“”CSKA submitted an application and included Ivan Fedotov in the match. The KHL accepted this application. Yes, he will be available to play in the league until December 31. The KHL and CSKA do not agree with the decision of the IIHF, which infringes on the rights of Russians to work. In defense of the player The Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation spoke, which sent a warning to the FHR, CSKA and the KHL about the inadmissibility of violating the rights of a citizen of the Russian Federation to work, and also ordered Fedotov to be allowed to participate in competitions. We live according to the laws of the Russian Federation. We do not violate IIHF norms, we continue the transfer policy. The decision to declare Fedotov will not lead to bad relations between the FHR and the IIHF.”
This statement was made on September 1, shortly before the opening match of the season between CSKA and Ak Bars Kazan, in which Fedotov took part. On the same day, the IIHF announced that the Russian Hockey Federation (RHF), which is a member of the International Hockey Federation, and not CSKA with the KHL, was fined 5 thousand Swiss francs, and also warned of new, stricter sanctions in case if Fedotov continues to play for CSKA, ignoring the disqualification.
Despite this, there was no further punishment from the IIHF. Federation President Luc Tardif answered such questions evasively every time, saying, “I don’t decide anything, this is the responsibility of the IIHF Disciplinary Committee, and I don’t know when they will make a decision.” Today this body gave an answer, but again – without new sanctions. In its statement, the department's disciplinary council indicated that it merely rejected the appeals of CSKA and Fedotov personally, respectively, maintaining the disqualification and ban on transfers in force.
CSKA was clearly ready for this. At the end of August, the president of the capital's club, Igor Esmantovich, told reporters that the “red-blues”, in case of a negative response from the IIHF, would appeal to the International Court of Arbitration (CAS). This is probably how the history of the army’s relationship with the IIHF will continue. It's a matter of time.
But what about the Russian Hockey Federation? As stated above, it is the FHR that is a member of the IIHF and, accordingly, is responsible for ensuring that in a particular case, CSKA and Fedotov comply with the instructions of the international agency. The FHR, represented by the organization’s general director Dmitry Kurbatov, reacted with restraint to today’s statement.
“” Fedotov filed his appeal, CSKA – his. there is no understanding at all when this will happen. Now a response has come from the IIHF to the appeals of the player and the club, the IIHF disciplinary committee refused to appeal. Today, the next authority is the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). The decision on whether to go to court will be accept the player and the club. Usually the filing deadline is a week or two, this is a technical point. It is difficult to say from what date Fedotov may begin to serve his disqualification if he and CSKA agree with the decision of the IIHF disciplinary body. Starting in September, the KHL refused to comply with the IIHF decision. This is a slightly different situation. The IIHF disqualified the player, and this disqualification could be challenged. The KHL simply refused to implement it. This is, in fact, the next violation on the part of the league. If the league and CSKA continue to fail to comply with the IIHF verdict, then nothing will change,” Kurbatov told reporters.
Soon another interesting information spread in the media. According to Match TV, the FHR in case of continued disregard on the Russian side IIHF regulations may lead to deprivation of membership in the international federation. The source claims that this is spelled out in the code, although the IIHF disciplinary regulations do not indicate this. One way or another, a reaction from the IIHF on this topic has already followed. Luc Tardif told Sport that the future of Russian hockey depends only on the Russians themselves:
“”Our further actions depend on what the FHR, CSKA and Fedotov do after this decision. The FHR is a member of the IIHF and is responsible for monitoring the application of the IIHF rules and regulations. Accordingly, my question is: does the FHR still want to remain part of the IIHF?”
It seems that this epic promises to be long.
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