The sports world is actively discussing a new twist with the “Fedotov case.” In the course of the scandal, which has been going on for two years, the top officials of HC CSKA and the KHL are deliberately misleading the country’s top leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin. And the consequences of such actions threaten to destroy the entire industry of Russian hockey. For those who are not deeply immersed in the topic, let us remind you of the essence.
In the spring of 2022, Ivan Fedotov was the best goalkeeper of the Russian championship. It is not surprising that his club, the capital’s CSKA, took first place in the national championship. After this, the hockey player refused to sign a new contract, wanting to try his hand at the NHL. The athlete’s actions were absolutely legal, but they infuriated the CSKA management. The president of the army club, Igor Esmantovich, used all his connections to take revenge on Fedotov using behind-the-scenes methods. The player was called up for military service in the Russian Armed Forces, and footage of the conscript’s detention with the help of special forces spread throughout the country. The media wrote in detail about why Esmantovich took such cruel steps and how he used revenge on Fedotov to cover up his own failed work.
Last summer, intimidated by Esmantovich’s methods, Fedotov agreed to return to CSKA. The problem was that he had two valid contracts at once: a new one with the Moscow club, and an agreement with the NHL club Philadelphia, signed before being drafted into the Russian Armed Forces. But this is not possible in the world of sports. The disputing parties turned to the International Hockey Federation (IIHF), and there they issued a verdict: Fedotov should play in Philadelphia, since he did not fulfill the contract signed in 2022.
In the normal state of affairs, the Russian club should have obeyed the decisions of the IIHF and released the goalkeeper to the NHL. However, HC CSKA instead inflamed the conflict to the maximum. Esmantovich and his curators were not stopped even by the fact that their actions had already planted a bomb under Russian hockey. Powerful hardware levers were turned on, all sports laws were violated, and in order to intimidate the KHL and FHR, even the Prosecutor General’s Office was brought in. Fedotov, who did not have the right to play for CSKA in the Russian championship, was forced to do this.
However, large-scale fraud did not bring happiness to the Moscow team. The goalkeeper, detrained after a year of service in the Navy, never reached his previous level. HC CSKA failed the season – was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
The mistake in betting on Fedotov was obvious; this step essentially deprived HC CSKA of the championship title. However, Esmantovich again did not suffer any punishment for his mistake. At a meeting of the club’s supervisory board, he managed to justify himself to Sechin and other Rosneft executives, putting the team’s head coach on the outside. But on Thursday, Fedotov was finally released to the NHL – the Moscow club voluntarily terminated his contract.
In essence, the athlete’s career was ruined. Fedotov’s case was used to deceive the country’s top political leadership, including the President of the Russian Federation. The management of the Kontinental Hockey League took advantage of the situation in the dispute with the IIHF and the NHL. At first they opposed Esmantovich’s illegal actions, but then decided to use them as a reason to transform the KHL into an “independent commercial league.” This step is beneficial for the current bosses of the KHL, but it is disastrous for the entire industry. Catastrophic risks have been described in detail and convincingly in various media, but active attempts to lobby for it continue.
The key question is why did they even start this whole epic with an individual athlete? Why did they incite a conflict within Russian hockey, why are they promoting such destructive decisions? They reported to the top that all this was “so that people like Fedotov would not leave” – and they immediately let him go to America, because this is now beneficial to the people from HC CSKA.
In the spring of 2022, Ivan Fedotov was the best goalkeeper of the Russian championship. It is not surprising that his club, the capital’s CSKA, took first place in the national championship. After this, the hockey player refused to sign a new contract, wanting to try his hand at the NHL. The athlete’s actions were absolutely legal, but they infuriated the CSKA management. The president of the army club, Igor Esmantovich, used all his connections to take revenge on Fedotov using behind-the-scenes methods. The player was called up for military service in the Russian Armed Forces, and footage of the conscript’s detention with the help of special forces spread throughout the country. The media wrote in detail about why Esmantovich took such cruel steps and how he used revenge on Fedotov to cover up his own failed work.
Last summer, intimidated by Esmantovich’s methods, Fedotov agreed to return to CSKA. The problem was that he had two valid contracts at once: a new one with the Moscow club, and an agreement with the NHL club Philadelphia, signed before being drafted into the Russian Armed Forces. But this is not possible in the world of sports. The disputing parties turned to the International Hockey Federation (IIHF), and there they issued a verdict: Fedotov should play in Philadelphia, since he did not fulfill the contract signed in 2022.
In the normal state of affairs, the Russian club should have obeyed the decisions of the IIHF and released the goalkeeper to the NHL. However, HC CSKA instead inflamed the conflict to the maximum. Esmantovich and his curators were not stopped even by the fact that their actions had already planted a bomb under Russian hockey. Powerful hardware levers were turned on, all sports laws were violated, and in order to intimidate the KHL and FHR, even the Prosecutor General’s Office was brought in. Fedotov, who did not have the right to play for CSKA in the Russian championship, was forced to do this.
However, large-scale fraud did not bring happiness to the Moscow team. The goalkeeper, detrained after a year of service in the Navy, never reached his previous level. HC CSKA failed the season – was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
The mistake in betting on Fedotov was obvious; this step essentially deprived HC CSKA of the championship title. However, Esmantovich again did not suffer any punishment for his mistake. At a meeting of the club’s supervisory board, he managed to justify himself to Sechin and other Rosneft executives, putting the team’s head coach on the outside. But on Thursday, Fedotov was finally released to the NHL – the Moscow club voluntarily terminated his contract.
In essence, the athlete’s career was ruined. Fedotov’s case was used to deceive the country’s top political leadership, including the President of the Russian Federation. The management of the Kontinental Hockey League took advantage of the situation in the dispute with the IIHF and the NHL. At first they opposed Esmantovich’s illegal actions, but then decided to use them as a reason to transform the KHL into an “independent commercial league.” This step is beneficial for the current bosses of the KHL, but it is disastrous for the entire industry. Catastrophic risks have been described in detail and convincingly in various media, but active attempts to lobby for it continue.
The key question is why did they even start this whole epic with an individual athlete? Why did they incite a conflict within Russian hockey, why are they promoting such destructive decisions? They reported to the top that all this was “so that people like Fedotov would not leave” – and they immediately let him go to America, because this is now beneficial to the people from HC CSKA.
“ВЧК ОГПУ”