On Friday, the CBJ announced Filatov had been sent down to Springfield of the AHL. I had tickets to Saturday nights game, so for me it was a happy coincidence, even if I'm sure it wasn't a happy day for Filatov.
So let's get into how Filatov played:
Remember, Nikki had arrived sometime earlier in the day on Saturday, so he definitely hadn't had a chance to participate in a full practice with the team. It's not clear as to whether or not he arrived in time for a morning skate, so we only know for sure he participated in warm-ups with the team before the game.
Nikita's official line: 1 shot, 0-0-0, and he was on the ice for a power play goal, though he wasn't really involved in the play. He was even on the night, and wasn't on the ice for any of the 3 goals against. His general play was ok, though I felt he was floating a bit. He played ok defensively, staying with his man, and only had one turnover that I saw. My seats are on the glass, so I have a pretty good angle for most of the play.
The biggest piece of news from last night is that for the first time in quite a while, Filatov looked like he wanted the puck. He only officially had one shot, but he hit a post and sent another shot wide. He had two other chances where he should have shot, but he attempted to set up Maxim Mayorov, who ruined the chance, not once but twice. Mayorov is having an OK season, but frankly, I think his last season as a CBJ prospect unless he really steps it up.
For obvious reasons, he wasn't playing on the teams top line along with Kubalik and Calvert. Kubalik had his first off game of the 3 I've seen, while Calvert had a strong one. Player of the night definitely belonged to Grant Clitsome, who had two goals and played a strong defensive game. John Moore, who had played poorly in both of the games I'd seen thus far had a good game last night. He had 4 shots, and more importantly played a very good defensive game. David Savard was a scratch last night, a casualty to the log jam of defensemen still plaguing Springfield.
