When the Ottawa Charge selected Anna Shokhina 13th overall, it was anything but unlucky. The Charge felt they'd stolen a top four talent in the entire draft, and later selected her Russian teammate Fanuza Kadirova.
The picks raised questions among many PWHL fans with no Russian player having laced up in the league to date. For Nick DiLisi and his agency, 93 Hockey Services, which has been representing women's hockey players since 2018, the process of getting Shokhina to Canada is well underway, and DiLisi was anything but surprised by her high selection.
"We’ve already started the visa process for Anna," DIlisi explained. "As an agency, we’ve worked with players from all over the world, including Russia, and have successfully helped them secure the proper visas and immigration approvals to come to North America. The PWHL also partners with an immigration firm that will assist us throughout the process. Anna will need both a Canadian visa and a U.S. visa to travel and compete against the US based PWHL teams."
Last year Ilona Markova became the first Russian player selected in the PWHL Draft. Her journey to Boston was less straight forward as she needed to go through Uzbekistan to find an American embassy. Shokhina has a Canadian embassy located in Moscow.
DiLisi has been following Shokhina since the 2022 Olympics and knows Shokhina can have an impact in the league from day one.
"We began recruiting Shokhina just over a year ago. I’ve followed her since the 2022 Olympics and was aware of her desire to play outside of Russia," said DiLisi. "We even spoke with some of her former teammates to get a character reference before moving forward in the process. Anna received significant interest from around the PWHL and interviewed with multiple teams. Thanks to our translator, who helped guide her through the interview process, we had a good feeling going into the draft that she would be selected."
Shokhina led Russia's ZhHL in scoring by a 13-point margin last year scoring 30 goals and 73 points in only 42 games. The 28-year-old has represented Russia internationally at multiple World Championships and Olympic Games, twice captained Russia's U-18 national team, and has twice been named the Best Player in Russia.
"Anna is a world-class player with elite skill and scoring ability," says DiLisi. "She’s been a leader everywhere she’s played and a key presence in the locker room. Her drive to win and bring a championship to Ottawa fuels her as she prepares for the upcoming season. I believe she’ll be one of the league’s top newcomers and make an immediate impact."
The selection of Kadirova, Shokhina's linemate with Russia and Dynamo-Neva St. Petersburg, gives Ottawa instant chemistry on the wings of a line, and will help ease the barriers both players may face with language and culture. Ottawa is also bringing Russian defender Vita Ponyatovskaya, who spent the past four seasons with Yale, to camp.
Whether it's one Russian, or four, as Ilona Markova is making another attempt to join the league this season, this season will mark the first time a Russian born player steps on the ice in the PWHL. According to DiLisi, he believes there's more talent in the nation that could soon look to join the league, providing another pipeline of players for the PWHL.
"I think many would be surprised by the level of play in Russia. I encourage PWHL teams to watch the league as there are certainly players worth bringing over to North America, and many young players who would thrive in the NCAA."