Nikita Filatov - International Play

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.