Categories
Dans les coulisses

Yaroslav Askarov on the move: his agent is on the case

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - DECEMBER 27: Yaroslav Askarov #30 of the Nashville Predators gets a break against the Carolina Hurricanes during an NHL game at Bridgestone Arena on December 27, 2023 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by John Russell/NHLI via Getty Images)

Last night, I revealed the list of guys most likely to change address this summer.

First on the list is Mitch Marner, followed by Jacob Trouba and Nikolaj Ehlers, who is surprisingly linked to the Habs. David Savard is 10th on the list.

And in 13th place is Preds goalie Yaroslav Askarov. According to The Fourth Period (as everyone else does), Askarov’s future is not in Nashville. We know Barry Trotz isn’t in a hurry, but he’s making calls.

The price to pay for the Russian will be high…

The 22-year-old masked man is ready to make the jump to the NHL, but with Juuse Saros having just extended his contract by eight years and Scott Wedgwood having recently been signed to back him up, there’s a feeling that he may not play at the top this year. His agent is aware of this and is working hard to get him out of this situation.

Dan Milstein (the agent in question) told Russian media sovsport.ru that he was working with the club to find options and solutions.

Yaroslav Askarov has the potential to become an elite goalkeeper. Today, we are working with the club on different possibilities. Yaroslav has proven to everyone that he is an NHL player. – Dan Milstein

(OBOXADSQ || []).push({“cmd”: “addBanner”});

He had an excellent season in 2023-2024. He may have slowed down in the playoffs (efficiency percentage of .882), but in the regular season, in both the NHL and the AHL, he was a brick wall. In two games in Nashville, he posted a .943 save percentage and a 1.47 goals-against average.

Obviously, it’s a small sample size, but he still played against two playoff teams: the Hurricanes and the Capitals.

What’s really impressive is that, in 44 regular-season games in the American league, he allowed just 2.39 goals per game. To say he’s ready for the big leagues is an understatement…

He may be 13th on The Fourth Period’s list of likely prospects, but in my opinion, he should be much higher on the list after his agent’s public outing.

Overtime

– The second overall pick in the last draft leaves the NCAA.

– Another first-round pick signed.

– It’s clearly not 2023.

– Big win for the Jays.

– Quebec pride.