F Rodion Amirov (2020, 15th, TOR) - tragically passed away due to brain tumor 8/14/23

[Golden_Jet]

That means he burns a year, otherwise would need to be an ATO with the Marlies.

 

[The Assclown]

Kinda mixed on this move. I would have liked for him to stay there to continue developing, but it could also mean he has the mental maturity to know himself in that he feels comfortable coming over, adapting to a new way of life and developing as a hockey player at the same time.

 

[3 Minute Minor]

That means he burns a year, otherwise would need to be an ATO with the Marlies.

No it doesn't? The same way Liljegren and Sandins ELCs didnt kick in until they were 20

Unless you're suggesting he plays NHL games with the Leafs, which is not happening.

 

[TheBeastCoast]

That means he burns a year, otherwise would need to be an ATO with the Marlies.

Wouldn't they just put him with the Marlies and it wouldn't burn an ELC year?

 

[SoundAndFury]

Seems like a bad move to everyone involved but oh well.

 

[3 Minute Minor]

Seems like a bad move to everyone involved but oh well.

Agreed. Toronto has been terrible with player development. Coming in, getting familiar with the city, staff, facilities, teammates, etc. is only going to stunt his growth. He would be better off staying in Russia and watching hockey on TV than getting in reps with the Marlies.

Like you said, bad move by everyone involved.

April fools

 

[SoundAndFury]

Agreed. Toronto has been terrible with player development. Coming in, getting familiar with the city, staff, facilities, teammates, etc. is only going to stunt his growth. He would be better off staying in Russia and watching hockey on TV than getting in reps with the Marlies.

Like you said, bad move by everyone involved.

Well, let's see.

Salavat is losing a young player which was very close to being a significant contributor and almost certainly overperformed his next contract.
Amirov is losing an almost guaranteed spot in the KHL's top-6 at a very young age, in one of the best systems in the country, and a bunch of money since he will be playing for 70k p/y for at very least a year.
Leafs aren't losing anything significant but at the same time, they made a move that has no real upside for them whatsoever. Other than "controlling his development" which isn't prone to backfire in the case of Russian prospects at all.

So yeah. Who is the big winner here? Also the "getting familiar" argument when the guy signs 3 year contract... Very strong. By the time he gets to the NHL half of his "teammates" aren't even going to be the teammates anymore.

 

[Coaches Coroner]

seems like the only ones "losing" outright in this are Salavat

 

[3 Minute Minor]

Well, let's see.

Salavat is losing a young player which was very close to being a significant contributor and almost certainly overperformed his next contract.
Amirov is losing an almost guaranteed spot in the KHL's top-6 at a very young age, in one of the best systems in the country, and a bunch of money since he will be playing for 70k p/y for at very least a year.
Leafs aren't losing anything significant but at the same time, they made a move that has no real upside for them whatsoever. Other than "controlling his development" which isn't prone to backfire in the case of Russian prospects at all.

So yeah. Who is the big winner here? Also the "getting familiar" argument when the guy signs 3 year contract... Very strong. By the time he gets to the NHL half of his "teammates" aren't even going to be the teammates anymore.

I have a hunch Salavat will survive without him.
Amirov might lose a spot in a KHLs top 6 but instead play a top 6 role in the AHL, doesn't seem like a big L for him. If we use another '01 Marlie as a comparison, Nick Robertson is getting 70k minors salary + 85k signing bonus, so financially he's better off.
There's definitely upside for the Leafs. "Controlling his development" is an upside, you can disagree if you'd like, there's no rule against being wrong. They have a much bigger development staff than Salavat. They can monitor his physical development better and spend more time on individual skill development than Salavat could ever offer. All while adjusting to the North America game.

Interesting that you cherry picked just the teammates aspect of getting familiar. Getting setup with an apartment and developing a routine in the city is 1 less thing he'll have to do in the future. Getting familiar with the coaching staff and development staff is also a benefit. Getting familiar with teammates is just 1 small but still beneficial aspect.

 

[SoundAndFury]

Interesting that you cherry picked just the teammates aspect of getting familiar. Getting setup with an apartment and developing a routine in the city is 1 less thing he'll have to do in the future. Getting familiar with the coaching staff and development staff is also a benefit. Getting familiar with teammates is just 1 small but still beneficial aspect.

I didn't cherry-pick, I could have picked any or all the things you listed. There is no significant difference between doing it now and doing it in a year to any of this.

Also when "they will survive" and "he's better off" become arguments why bother even talking. Whatever floats your boat dude, congrats on great signing I guess.

 

[sansabri]

did they already change the 2 year rule?

 

[LeafChief]

That means he burns a year, otherwise would need to be an ATO with the Marlies.

Lol. It most certainly does not.

 

[BoredBrandonPridham]

I didn't cherry-pick, I could have picked any or all the things you listed. There is no significant difference between doing it now and doing it in a year to any of this.

Also when "they will survive" and "he's better off" become arguments why bother even talking. Whatever floats your boat dude, congrats on great signing I guess.

Better to absorb the challenges of moving to a new country and learning the language when you are a kid brought over to develop, than when you’re a 22yr old and you have more expectations on your game performance in a shorter time frame.

 

[Namikaze Minato]

Could very easily step in and center a line with Robertson and Joey Anderson in the AHL right away but its possible they want him on the Taxi squad to start, get him working with NHL talent and our development coaches and Barb.

Must be very exciting for the young man to sign his first north american pro contract (if he indeed does).

 

[LeafChief]

Well, let's see.

Salavat is losing a young player which was very close to being a significant contributor and almost certainly overperformed his next contract.
Amirov is losing an almost guaranteed spot in the KHL's top-6 at a very young age, in one of the best systems in the country, and a bunch of money since he will be playing for 70k p/y for at very least a year.
Leafs aren't losing anything significant but at the same time, they made a move that has no real upside for them whatsoever. Other than "controlling his development" which isn't prone to backfire in the case of Russian prospects at all.

So yeah. Who is the big winner here? Also the "getting familiar" argument when the guy signs 3 year contract... Very strong. By the time he gets to the NHL half of his "teammates" aren't even going to be the teammates anymore.

If Salavat had hopes of keeping him, maybe they should have given him some consistent ice time.

The Leafs can't be worried about Salavat's future. Had Amirov been given minutes this year he is probably still there next season.

With all this said, it appears to be a rumour. I don't see any valid media sources reporting this yet unless I've missed something.

 

[SoundAndFury]

Better to absorb the challenges of moving to a new country and learning the language when you are a kid brought over to develop, than when you’re a 22yr old and you have more expectations on your game performance in a shorter time frame.

Kuznetsov, Tarasenko, Buchnevich, Panarin, Kaprizov sure prove your point.

With all this said, it appears to be a rumour. I don't see any valid media sources reporting this yet unless I've missed something.

It's being reported repeatedly for a couple of months now though. There can't be that much smoke without fire, one would assume.

 

[LeafChief]

Kuznetsov, Tarasenko, Buchnevich, Panarin, Kaprizov sure prove your point.


It's being reported repeatedly for a couple of months now though. There can't be that much smoke without fire, one would assume.

Anyone credible in Russia reporting it?

 

[3 Minute Minor]

I didn't cherry-pick, I could have picked any or all the things you listed. There is no significant difference between doing it now and doing it in a year to any of this.

Also when "they will survive" and "he's better off" become arguments why bother even talking. Whatever floats your boat dude, congrats on great signing I guess.

Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today?

Salavat doesn't have any of these people.

 

[Knies iT]

Amirov was getting < 10shifts/game in some of Salavat's playoff matches and was receiving some of the lowest minutes on the team at times. The argument that he would be giving up an increased role on Ufa is speculative. They were completely inconsistent with his ice-time and even decreased it as the year went on.

He'll be fed 1st/2nd line minutes in the AHL guaranteed, similar to Robertson (who he is less than 2 months younger than), while being down the block from the NHL parent club with full access to world-class skill/skating/conditioning coaches year-round that no team in the entire KHL can match. The organization has a number of Russian speaking players/trainers already in the city (SDA, Mikheyev, Barabanov, Galchenyuk, Antropov, etc.) to ease the transition.

These Russian posters are insufferable, nearing Finnish levels. They scour the search function to see if someone even mentions a Russian player going to NA and then copy/paste their regurgitated paragraph about some weak sample size of prospects that it did/didn't work out for.

 

[LeafChief]

Amirov was getting < 10shifts/game in some of Salavat's playoff matches and was receiving some of the lowest minutes on the team at times. The argument that he would be giving up an increased role on Ufa is speculative. They were completely inconsistent with his ice-time and even decreased it as the year went on.

He'll be fed 1st/2nd line minutes in the AHL guaranteed, similar to Robertson (who he is less than 2 months younger than), while being down the block from the NHL parent club with full access to world-class skill/skating/conditioning coaches year-round that no team in the entire KHL can match. The organization has a number of Russian speaking players/trainers already in the city (SDA, Mikheyev, Barabanov, Galchenyuk, Antropov, etc.) to ease the transition.

These Russian posters are insufferable, nearing Finnish levels. They scour the search function to see if someone even mentions a Russian player going to NA and then copy/paste their regurgitated paragraph about some weak sample size of prospects that it did/didn't work out for.

This pretty much explains it.

 

[Namikaze Minato]

Anyways, back to Amirov potentially signing and enough of people trying to derail the thread with international hockey politics.

Do we think he will step right into a role with the Marlies to end this season or will he stay home and come over for the start of next season?

 

[WTFMAN99]

He needs ice time and he needs stability.

No guarantee he gets the ice time in Russia.

Leafs can control the ice time but they need to make sure he's going to come over in a good situation. Either a parent should come or maybe he should spend a couple years with Antropov.

 

[nobody]

I want us to handle his development from now on. Salavat had their chance and they've short-changed the kid and not put him in a position to succeed. Marlies will give him top-line players and a top-line role. Even if he struggles. He has no fear of playing badly or making a mistake and then being slapped on the bench or tumbling down the lineup. I don't care what happens to Salavat or the KHL to be completely honest. I know we have a Russian friend here who wants to keep top-tier talent in Russia, and I can completely understand and support the sentiment but hockey is a business and as a top-round pick, Amirov is a top asset for our team and the TML future success. It's nothing personal.

Amirov getting to play top minutes with the Marlies and practicing with the big boys along with other Russian speakers like Mikh and Barabanov will be a huge help. Nik Antropov is their chaufeur.

 

[Martin Skoula]

I understand the argument for letting high-skill puck dominant players like Kuznetsov and Panarin develop their ability to carry play and take over games in Russia, but Amirov isn't really that. It makes more sense to me for complementary two-way wingers to put in work on small ice in a more physical environment. We're not talking about a PPG+ potential all-star regardless of where he develops.

 

[Stephen]

I understand the argument for letting high-skill puck dominant players like Kuznetsov and Panarin develop their ability to carry play and take over games in Russia, but Amirov isn't really that. It makes more sense to me for complementary two-way wingers to put in work on small ice in a more physical environment. We're not talking about a PPG+ potential all-star regardless of where he develops.

Amirov is a high skilled prospect with all-star upside. I'm going to reference a pre-draft write up so there's no accusation of Leaf fan bias:

With the No. 14 pick, the Oilers select… Rodion Amirov?

Amirov’s game is built around pure skill. He’s flashy, quick, and creative, and has strong playmaking and shooting ability. Though you’ll notice him more on offence because of those flashy skills, Amirov also isn’t a slouch defensively and has been described as one of the better two-way forwards in the draft.

When you see an undersized, tremendously skilled and creative, 200-foot Russian player, you dream about another Nikita Kucherov. Expecting any prospect to become a Hart Trophy winner like Kucherov is obviously a massive ask, but Amirov certainly does have some major upside.