International man of mystery, Artyom Zagidulin dutifully takes his place, standing near the front of the Calgary Flames’ interview back-drop.



Smiling sheepishly, he lifts his mask — only as much as necessary — and peeks over his white gloves.



The post-practice gathering for him is small, only a Russian interpreter, Iya Gavrilova — a three-time Olympian who often helps out the team with translating needs — and a notepad-toting stranger.



Despite the modest scrum, Zagidulin is shy. Even with Gavrilova gamely handling the back-and-forth, he politely provides only the bare bones.



That he started in hockey when he was six. That he took up goalkeeping when no one else on his team was interested. That his father Rinat was a big hockey fan. That his hero was Evgeni Nabokov, who, during the 2004-05 lockout, played in his home town of Magnitogorsk. That he wasn’t good enough to get drafted. That only in recent years did he...