The No. 4 ranked prospect on our Top 10 Toronto Maple Leafs prospects list is Russian goaltender, Artur Akhtyamov.
Akhtyamov was drafted by the Maple Leafs in the Fourth round 106th overall at the 2020 NHL Draft. He was born in Kazan, Russia on October 31st, 2001 and spent his younger years working his way up in the Ak Bars Kazan system, finally getting his cup of coffee with his hometown club in the 2021-22 season.
Although not having the hype that an Igor Shesterkin or Yaroslav Askarov had, Akhtyamov has quietly impressed throughout his career, working his way up the ranks from the Juniors (MHL) to the second tier (VHL) and then the top tier (KHL). In the VHL especially, Akhytamov found plenty of success winning best goaltender honours as well as various monthly awards for his position and even playoffs MVP.
Akhtyamov is one of the top ranked goalies in the Leafs system, boasting decent size by contemporary standards at 6'2 170lbs. He is an athletic goalie who uses his quick feet to move side-to-side quickly and is unafraid to sprawl out in order to stop pucks. This is a bit of an unorthodox style in today's NHL but it has worked for him up to this point.
What they did last season
After an impressive final few seasons in Russia, dominating at the VHL level and impressing at the KHL level, Akhtyamov came to North America joined the Maple Leafs American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Toronto Marlies.
He quickly took the league and fan base by storm starting the year of 3-0-0 and a .961 save percentage in his first three games. He did cool down and come back to earth of course, finishing the year playing 26 games with the Marlies. The Russian netminder held a record of 11-8-7 with a 2.81 goals against average and a .901 save percentage and three shutouts.
He showed a lot of great potential last year, showing that his play can translate to North American ice and performing well in one of the best leagues in the world.
What we expect this season
Akhtyamov likely fills a similar role this upcoming season, splitting time with fellow Leafs goaltending prospect, Dennis Hildeby on the Marlies roster. He may also have to manage time with the possible promotion of ECHL goaltender, Vyacheslav Peksa.
In terms of his play, he will hopefully continue to improve on his numbers from last year with an outside chance of NHL starts with him realistically being the fourth string goalie. The Marlies as a whole will look to improve and hope take a run at the Calder Cup and Akhtyamov will be a big part of that.
How does Akhtyamov fit the Leafs' plans?
At this stage it is hard to project where Akhtyamov fits into the future of the Leafs crease, Joseph Woll and Anthony Stolarz create undeniably a great tandem in the NHL. Woll is locked up for the next three seasons at a fair number of $3.667 million per season, it is unlikely he gets moved anytime soon.
Stolarz on the other hand is on the final year of his two-year deal and will be an unrestricted free agent (UFA) next summer. This could possibly create an opening for one of Akhtyamov or Hildeby to earn an NHL job for next season but with his stellar performance, the Leafs may be hoping to re-sign him and keep their tandem intact.
There is always a need for quality depth, especially at such a highly coveted position like goaltending but without a clear path to an NHL job, Akhtyamov may find himself being utilized as a trade chip. There is always the off-chance that things do not play out this way and Akhtyamov seizes his opportunity and becomes the goalie of the future. Only time will tell.
What is Akhtyamov's NHL ceiling?
It is hard to predict but given his play throughout his career both in Russia and his one year in North America, there is no denying that he has some real NHL potential. He will be 24 years old by the end of October, giving him a relatively small window to develop before the pressure really starts to pile on.
At this stage, I would confident pin his projection as an NHL backup with the ceiling being a tandem goalie, likely as a 1B option at the NHL level. There is no denying his raw skill but the most important thing for Akhtyamov will be the opportunities he gets to prove he is worthy of a shot at the next level.