Nikita Filatov

Nikita Vasilyevich Filatov (Никита Васильевич Филатов; born May 25, 1990) is a Russian professional ice hockey winger currently playing for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was the top-ranked European skater by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau and was selected sixth overall by the Blue Jackets in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. Prior to being drafted, he played for CSKA Moscow in their minor and junior hockey systems. He has played two seasons in North America, splitting time between the Blue Jackets and their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate the Syracuse Crunch. During the 2009–10 season, Filatov was unhappy with his situation in Columbus and was loaned to CSKA Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) for the remainder of the season

Filatov has represented Russia in international hockey at two World U18 Championships, winning gold and silver medals, and three World Junior Championships, where he has won two bronze medals. He was named to the Tournament All-Star Team at the 2008 World U18 Championships and the 2009 World Junior Championships.

Junior
Filatov played minor and junior hockey in the CSKA Red Army hockey system from the age of 13. At the age of 15 during the 2005–06 season, Filatov made his debut for CSKA 2 (the club's junior team), where he continued to play during the 2006–07 season, averaging more than three points per game. In the same season, Filatov made his international debut for Russia at the World Under 18 Championship. During the 2007–08 season, Filatov made his professional Russian Super League debut with CSKA, seeing limited action in five games. He spent the majority of the season playing at the junior level in Russia. With his CSKA junior team, Filatov played in 23 games, scoring 23 goals and providing 24 assists. Leading up to the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, the league's annual meeting at which the rights to amateur players are divided among teams, NHL's Central Scouting Bureau ranked Filatov as the top European skater in their mid-term and final rankings. After the 2007–08 season, Filatov was selected in the first round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, the sixth overall selection, by the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Filatov was also the first overall selection in the 2008 Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Import Draft, selected by the Sudbury Wolves of the Ontario Hockey League. Sudbury general manager Mike Foligno was comfortable with the risks of not knowing whether Filatov would play at junior or professional level when he came to North America. Blue Jackets general manager Scott Howson would not guarantee Filatov a place on their team, saying "We’ve already told Nikita that we’ll see how things go in training camp and we’ll decide what’s best for him."

Professional
After being drafted by the Blue Jackets, Filatov signed a three-year contract with the club on July 10, 2008. His base salary for the contract was $875,000, with bonus clauses that could bring the value as high as $1.35 million per season. As dictated by the NHL's collective bargaining agreement, Filatov's contract was for three years. His signing with Columbus created some controversy within the KHL, as the league president Alexander Medvedev claimed that the Blue Jackets owed CSKA Moscow compensation of at least $1.5 million for signing Filatov. Medvedev claimed that although the term of the contract had expired, under Russian law it did not terminate until an indemnity amount had been negotiated. The Blue Jackets and Filatov believed that giving his club 30 days notice was sufficient to terminate the contract. CSKA threatened to withhold Filatov's transfer card, thus impeding his ability to play in another league, but Filatov, his lawyers and the Blue Jackets believed they had followed the necessary tenets of Russian law. Filatov's contract was one of six reviewed by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) in an attempt to mediate the disputes between the KHL and NHL. During this investigation, the players were unable to play international hockey sanctioned by the IIHF. In September, the KHL dropped its opposition to Filatov's contract with the Blue Jackets, and he received his transfer.

Filatov did not make the team after attending training camp with the Blue Jackets, instead making his North American professional debut for the Blue Jackets' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch. However, on October 15, 2008 Filatov was called up to the NHL, playing in his first game (and scoring his first goal) with the Blue Jackets on October 17, 2008 against the Nashville Predators. For the rest of the 2008–09 season, Filatov split time between the AHL's Crunch and the NHL's Blue Jackets. He played eight games with the Blue Jackets, finishing the season with four goals. He became the first Blue Jackets rookie to record a hat-trick in the January 10, 2009 match against the Minnesota Wild. At the end of the season, Filatov had played 39 games with the Crunch in the AHL scoring 16 goals and adding 16 assists. He was named as a starter for the PlanetUSA team in the 2009 AHL All-Star Game.

At the start of the 2009–10 NHL season, Filatov made the Blue Jackets roster after training camp. Although healthy, he did not play in six of the team's first 18 games, a decision made by Columbus head coach Ken Hitchcock. He was unhappy with his playing time and role on the team under Hitchcock and requested to be transferred back to his Russian club team. Hitchcock and the Blue Jackets coaching staff tried to improve Filatov's attention to defensive aspects of the game. This emphasis on defensive play did not suit Filatov, and he did not receive much playing time. The Blue Jackets management agreed to Filatov's request to return to Russia for the remainder of the season. This arrangement resulted from direct dealings between the Blue Jackets and CSKA Moscow, where Filatov's salary was paid by the Russian club, and the Blue Jackets retained his rights. Shortly after his return to Russia, Filatov set a KHL record by scoring the game winning goal in three consecutive games. He was named the league's best newcomer (defined by the KHL as "a player born in 1987 or later, who has played no more than 20 top-level matches in previous national tournaments") for November, and the league's best rookie for the 11th week of the season. In his shortened season in Russia, Filatov played 26 games, scoring 9 goals and adding 13 assists. Initial statements by both sides indicated the player would return to Columbus after the 2009–10 season, but since returning to Russia, Filatov has been less clear about his intentions for the 2010–11 season, stating "I hope I’ll be back next year, but right now, it’s really hard to say because it will again be a tough decision." Howson has not commented on Filatov's stance, except to say that he expects Filatov to be at the team's training camp prior to the 2010–11 season. Subsequently, Filatov stated after the 2009–10 season that he intended to return to Columbus for training camp.

During the off-season, the Blue Jackets sent development coach Tyler Wright to Russia to train with Filatov to assess his readiness for the upcoming season, and to communicate the team's desire to work with him. Blue Jackets' head coach Scott Arniel was pleased to see Filatov arrive in Columbus six weeks ahead of the teams' 2010–11 season, allowing him a chance to mend relationships with his teammates who may have been annoyed by Filatov's departure. Howson says the team has never doubted Filatov's skill, "Nikita has the skill and the ability to play in a top-six role". Arniel is optimistic about Filatov's return to the team, offering him a clean slate and a chance to earn a spot on one of the team's top two lines. After speaking with his friend Sergei Shirokov (who played for Arniel on the Manitoba Moose), Filatov was optimistic about working with Arniel.

International play
Filatov has played extensively for Russia's national teams, first in age-group competitions, and later internationally. His first IIHF competition for Russia was the 2007 U18 Championship held in Finland. Russia won a gold medal in that tournament; as an underaged player, Filatov contributed four goals and five assists in seven games. He led the Russian team in total points and was second to Alexei Cherepanov in goals scored. After this tournament, Russia's coaches named Filatov as one of the team's three best players. Filatov also played at the 2008 U18 Championship, held in Russia. Filatov captained the team to a silver medal, scoring three goals and adding six assists. He was named to the Tournament All-Star Team.

At the 2008 World Junior Championship Filatov made his debut with Russia's Under-20 junior squad. At the tournament, he scored four goals and added five assists, leading the Russian squad in total points and placing second to Viktor Tikhonov in goals scored. The Russian team captured the bronze medal at this tournament, after defeating the United States 4–2. Filatov scored two goals in the bronze medal game, and was named Russia's best player of the game by the IIHF.

The AHL's Syracuse Crunch released Filatov to participate in the 2009 World Junior Championship, which was held in Ottawa, Ontario. Filatov served as Russia's captain for the tournament. In seven games at the tournament, he scored eight goals and added three assists, which tied him for fourth in tournament scoring. The Russian team again captured the bronze medal, this time by defeating Slovakia by a score of 5–2. Filatov was named best player of the game for a preliminary round game against Finland and for the bronze medal game against Slovakia, and he was named to the Tournament All-Star Team.

After returning to Russia early in the 2009–10 season, Filatov had the opportunity to compete in a third World Junior Championship at the 2010 tournament held in Saskatchewan, Canada. As in 2009, he served as Russia's team captain. During preliminary round play, Filatov was named best player for Russia in their game against Finland. The tournament was a disappointment for the Russians after they lost to Switzerland in the quarterfinals. Prior to the fifth place game against the Czech Republic, Filatov was stripped of his captaincy and replaced by teammate Kirill Petrov after criticizing the team personnel during a media scrum.

Playing style
Scouting reports on Filatov were mixed in advance of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. Sergei Nemchinov, coach of Russia's junior national team said of Filatov, "He definitely has an NHL upside because he can score, is a well-rounded player and is responsible in the defensive zone." Independent scouting service Red Line Report at one point declared Filatov "the next best thing to Steven Stamkos" (who was eventually selected first overall in the 2008 draft). McKeen's Hockey scouts described him as a cross between Ilya Kovalchuk and Maxim Afinogenov. His strengths included his skating and vision, as well as the inclination to play at high intensity. The NHL's Director of European Scouting, Goran Stubb, assessed Filatov's NHL readiness as, "Nikita is a leader, has a great attitude, an excellent work ethic and tons of talent." Other scouts were not as impressed with his defensive game, preferring to focus on his offensive abilities. Off the ice, Filatov does not train in a traditional gym or weight room, preferring to run outside in sand and lift objects such as trees and boulders.

Personal life
Filatov was born in Moscow, Russia to parents Vasily and Yelena. He speaks fluent English due in large part to his mother, a teacher who gave him lessons at home. When he started playing professional hockey in North America for the Syracuse Crunch, his mother stayed for several weeks to help him get acclimatised to his new surroundings.

International
Statistics Sources