Checking in With Filip Sitar
Image Credit: RPI Athletics
Filip Sitar returns to RPI after this tournament with Slovenia. Get to know the rising junior forward.
WRITTEN BY MIKE KLEIN
FRIBOURG, Switzerland — If one constant exists in the hockey career of RPI sophomore Filip Sitar, it would be that movement is inevitable.
In 2019, at the young age of fourteen, Sitar left his hometown of Ljubljana, Slovenia, to pursue his hockey dreams with Flemingsbergs IK in Visattra, Sweden. He played in both the U16 and U18 age groups for two seasons before relocating again to Stockholm and joining AIK U18 and U20 teams. At the end of his third season in Sweden, he wore the Slovenian national colors for the first time in Division 1 Group B of the IIHF World U18 Championships in Asiago, Italy.
“I never get tired of playing for Team Slovenia,” said Sitar. “Whichever level it is, U18, U20, and now the men’s team, I’ve always been grateful for the opportunity to play for my country and will never turn that down.”
Sitar returned to AIK for the 2022-23 season and played the majority of the year with AIK’s U20 team and earned himself a call-up to the HockeyAllsvenskan league, the second tier of Swedish professional hockey. Although he only appeared in one game, he scored his first professional goal and returned to the Slovenian national U18 team as they hosted that season’s championships. He could not have asked for a better return home, as he posted three goals and eight assists for 11 total points and finished as the tournament’s leading scorer.
Another season meant another move for Sitar, and he found himself at the southern tip of Sweden playing for the Malmö Redhawks. Once again, he thrived in the new environment, leading the team with 50 points (13 goals, 35 assists) in 40 games. His junior schedule, however, was interrupted by national team duty at the U20 tournament, where he contributed 5 goals and 5 assists (10 points) to the cause. Additionally, he played 11 games with the Redhawks in the Swedish Hockey League.
Image Credit: hockeysverige.se | Sitar in SHL game action with the Malmö Redhawks.
Incidentally, Sitar’s brief flirtation with professional hockey caused him to consider NCAA hockey to further his development and he enrolled at the University of Connecticut for the 2024-25 academic year.
“The idea of playing in the NCAA first came up in my third year in Sweden,” he said. “It’s hard to get playing time in the SHL right away, so I started thinking seriously about going to the US and playing college hockey.”
“I was suspended for a few games at UConn because of my time in the SHL, but it was worth it,” he said. “I learned a lot, both in the classroom and on the ice. We made the NCAA tournament and advanced to the regional finals, and it was a great experience for me.”
Although Sitar did not enjoy the individual success at UConn that he had in Sweden, he was named to the Slovenian National Team as they competed in the 2025 IIHF World Championships in Stockholm.
“[The 2025 World Championships] was so special for me,” he said. “It was my debut with the men’s national team and I got to go back to Sweden, which was where my journey really started. It felt like a homecoming in a way, and even better, we weren’t relegated [to Division 1 Group A,] so if I continued to play well, I could keep playing in the top division.”
After his freshman year at UConn, Sitar again found himself on the move, this time to Troy, New York, to skate for the RPI Engineers, who had just hired the well-regarded Eric Lang, previously of American International College, as its head coach.
“Playing for Coach Lang was great,” he said. “He brought in an entirely new team with a lot of freshmen and transfers and set a very high standard for us. It wasn’t the easiest year on the ice, but we know we will be a lot better this season. Even though we will have some new players on the team, there will be a lot of returning veterans and with the coaching staff we have, we’re definitely going in the right direction.”
While RPI may not have had the most on-ice success last season, Sitar found himself in awe of the atmosphere at the Houston Field House and hopes to reward their dedication in the next two years.
Image Credit: RPI Athletics | Sitar in game action with RPI at Houston Field House in Troy, New York.
“It’s so much fun to play in front of the RPI fans,” he said. “I was told that throughout the team’s history, the [Houston Field House] is one of the loudest arenas in college hockey and the fans go crazy for us. Every home game is special and we want to give them a lot to cheer about.”
Sitar’s journey so far gives the impression that he is always planning his next move, but for now, he seems firmly at home in Troy and urges fellow Slovenians to follow in his footsteps.
“More and more players from Europe are coming to the US to play NCAA hockey every year,” he commented. “I think it’s a great option and I can’t say enough good things about NCAA hockey. I know that everybody’s journey is different, but I think everybody should consider playing college hockey.”
