Moscow, Russia – The New Tecumseth Civics franchise has long been at the top of the GMHL when it comes to elite goaltending talent, dating all the way back to the franchises days as the Alliston Coyotes. During the time of the Coyotes one of the stars of the league was Russian goaltender Anton Todykov, who just recently wrapped up his first complete season in the KHL.

Todykov was one half of a goalie tandem for the Vityaz Podolsk KHL club and played very well in one of the strongest leagues in the world. In 24 Games Todykov posted a 10-11-0 record with a GAA (Goals Against Average) of 2.91 and a SVS% (Save Percentage) of .916 those numbers ranked 26th and 18th League wide amongst goaltenders who appeared in at least that same number of games. He also added a shutout while on the way to making 656 saves for a Vityaz team who finished only 4 points out of a playoff spot and finished with 2 more wins than the season prior. Some of Todykovs teammates were former NHL Star Alexander Semin, and NHL players Mattias Tedenby and Kaspars Daugavins.

Todykov joined the GMHL in 2010-2011 playing for the Jamestown Jets, where he immediately became a starting goalie, posting a 3.34 GAA and .928 Save Percentage in 17 Games Played. Following that season, Todykov was moved to the Shelburne Red Wings and then the Alliston Coyotes (Now the New Tecumseth Civics). Todykov was one of the top goalies in the GMHL for the next three years, being voted to the GMHL All-Star Game in all three years. Todykov had his career best season in 2012-2013 where posted a 4.32 GAA and .919 Save Percentage in 24 Regular Season Games Played, and 3.20 GAA .921 Save Percentage in 6 Playoff Games Played. His impressive play in that season earned him the GMHL Best Goalie award in 2012-2013. After another impressive season in 2013-2014, Todykov was immediately signed to the professional level out of the GMHL, receiving a two-year contract with Gornyak Rudny, which plays out of Kazakhstan’s top league. 

Todykov immediately made his impact at the professional level, posting a 2.20 GAA and .926 Save Percentage in 45 Regular Season Games Played and 2.07 GAA and .928 Save Percentage in 15 Playoff Games Played. This earned him the Top Goaltender of the Year for the 2014-2015 Season in Kazakhstan. Todykov continued his play for the following season for Gornyak Rudny, and in 2016, Todykov received a two-year, two-way deal in the VHL. In 2016-2017, Todykov posted a 2.12 GAA and .924 Save Percentage in 11 Games Played in the VHL.  Todykov continued his impressive play the following season, and posted a 1.30 GAA and .947 Save Percentage in 11 Regular Season Games. This earned him the Goalie of the Week Award in the VHL twice, and received a call-up to the KHL where he posted a 2.34 GAA and .947 Save Percentage. Todykov’s team won the Regular Season Championship in the VHL as well, and went on to win VHL Championship and the Petrov Cup as well, where Todykov posted a 2.05 GAA and .916 Save Percentage in 7 Playoff Games.

Todykov was an instrumental part of Dynamo St. Petersburg’s Regular Season/Playoff Championships, and he was re-signed back to the team on a two-way deal for the 2018-2019 Season, where he became the starter for the team. With Alexander Samonov making the jump up to the KHL, the starting job was up for grabs, and Todykov didn't hesitate to take it. He started the year on fire, not only earning Goaltender of the Week in September, but being voted Goaltender of the Month for September as well. With the starting position soley his, he managed to put up a tremendous stat line of 1.77 GAA and .919 Save Percentage in 39 Games Played. He ended the season with the most shutouts in the VHL. He continued his excellent play into the playoffs posting a 1.71 GAA and .925 Save Percentage in 5 Games Played, however, his team wasn't able to repeat as the Petrov Cup Champions. Despite not being able to capture the title for a second year in a row, Dynamo St. Petersburg were happy with Todykov's breakout year, and they decided to sign him to another one-year deal for the 2019-2020 Season.

The KHL is arguably the second best league in the world. Specifically many players have gone to and from the NHL to the KHL and vice versa. It is great to see a former GMHL player at this high level of hockey, and we congratulate Todykov and his teammates on a successful season during what has been one of the most unorthodox years in hockey!