Many question marks are now floating around Kaprizov. News first appeared in the media that the twenty-five-year-old native of Novokuznetsk was to flee the country to the USA before the authorities.
Russian newspaper Sport-Express reported on Wednesday that Kaprizov had returned to the United States after his name was linked to a forged military ID.
The Olympic gold medalist from PyeongChang had a fraudulent ID purchased from a former military officer in Ufa who was arrested. Kaprizov was playing for Ufa in the KHL at the time before moving to CSKA for three years. The Moscow club is the link between Kaprizov and Fedotov.
However, Wild general manager Bill Guerin denied reports of a dramatic overseas flight, saying Kaprizov is still in Russia.
“We’re trying to find out as much as we can, but we’re not worried at this point,” Guerin told US media. “I’ve spoken to his agent. We’re not panicking, we’re trying to gather information and see if the reports in the local media about Kaprizov are credible,” the manager added .
The confusion surrounding the forward comes just days after goalkeeper Fedotov, who helped CSKA Moscow to the KHL title last year and was named the league’s best goalkeeper, was arrested in Russia.
Fedotov was detained by the police in St. Petersburg on Friday. He now faces charges of evading military service because of his involvement in the NHL, where he signed a contract with Philadelphia.
The member of the silver team from this year’s Olympic Games in Beijing was later taken to Severomorsk, where he is awaiting the next transfer. He should serve at a military base on the Nová Země archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. Does the same fate await another Russian hockey star?
