NHL Prospects In AHL Update: Maple Leafs’ Akhtyamov, Isles’ Jefferies Shine

Each week, FloHockey’s prospect analyst, Chris Peters breaks down notable performances in the AHL that NHL fans should be paying attention to. 

Here’s a look at some of the big performances from the weekend and the early goings of the season including a player that just got his first recall to the NHL.

Admirals’ Zach L’Heureux Gets The Call To Nashville

Zach L’Heureux is a player you always notice in a game. Sometimes it’s because of an excellent play, sometimes it’s because he’s absolutely in the other team’s grill and even sometimes it’s because he steps over the line.

The fire that burns in L’Heureux every shift is definitely evident as he’s going to let the opposition know he’s there. Now he’s going to find out how NHL players will respond to him as the Nashville Predators just called him up and expect him to make his NHL debut.

L’Heuruex had five points through the first four games of the season for the Milwaukee Admirals, including three goals, all of which came last weekend against the Rockford IceHogs.

There is so much going on here, but it ended in a Zach L’Heureux and that’s really all you need to know… right?@mkeadmirals | #MILhockey @TheAHL | #AHL #Smashville pic.twitter.com/lCnpBNmJsU

— FloHockey (@FloHockey) October 19, 2024

The skill is there, the tenacity is there and, in his second professional season, the scoring has been there. The Predators organization has let L’Heureux play to his identity and it’s working for him. It’s working for them, too, as now the 2021 first-rounder will get his first look at the NHL.

As a rookie in the AHL last season, L’Heureux had 48 points in 66 games and a staggering 197 penalty minutes. At 5-foot-11 and 196 pounds, he does not look like the fighting type, but he’ll drop the gloves when he needs to and that’s been frequent enough because teams so often want to get at him for a hit his thrown or a little extra-curriculars after the whistle. 

Quite frankly, Nashville needs that kind of energy in their group right now. The Predators are still winless to start the NHL season, having lost their first five games while giving up 13 more goals than they’ve scored. Injecting a little energy in the form of L’Heureux is kind of the least they can do right now to try to shake things up. 

If there’s one thing you can count on, his debut will be anything but quiet.

Goalie Artur Akhtyamov Stopping (Almost) Everything In Toronto

The proliferation of Russian goalies in North American pro hockey has been one of the more obvious trends of the last few years. At the NHL level, you have the likes of Igor Shesterkin, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Ilya Sorokin, just to name a few. There are plenty more in the AHL right now and one of the most recent additions is off to an incredibly hot start for the Toronto Marlies.

Artur Akhtyamov is in his first North American professional season with the Toronto Maple Leafs’ AHL affiliate. The 22-year-old has made three starts, has won all three and is posting an astonishing .964 save percentage, stopping 80 of 83 shots so far.

On Sunday, he recorded his first AHL shutout with a 17-save effort against Utica on home ice. That follows a debut last week where he stopped 38 of 39 against the San Diego Gulls.

Some goalies find the transition to North America more challenging than others. Akhtyamov is making it look easy at this point. On top of that, he gets to be a tandem-mate with a two-time Stanley Cup champion in Matt Murray, who is currently platooning with the young Russian.

It’s a great setup for the Marlies, who are unbeaten through five games and outscoring the opposition 19-8.  

Wild’s Hunter Haight Scores Hat Trick For Iowa

The Iowa Wild are struggling to start their season. Winless through four games, Iowa had a pretty rough weekend on the road in San Jose where the Barracuda scored at will, seemingly, on star goalie prospect Jesper Wallstedt.

If you’re looking for a silver lining, though, there’s one in the form of rookie Hunter Haight.

The Wild scored three goals all weekend in San Jose. All of them came from Haight, who won the Memorial Cup with the Saginaw Spirit last year and has grown into one of the more important prospects currently on the roster in the AHL.

The 20-year-old from Strathroy, Ontario, has tremendous skill and a goal-scorer’s sense. He’s still going to have to get stronger to more consistently impact the game at the professional level, but there’s so much to like about the energy and skill that he plays with.

Selected 47th overall in 2022, Haight had a career-best 25 goals last season with Saginaw and added another 11 in 22 postseason games including the Memorial Cup tournament.

Scoring a hat trick in only his second weekend as a professional bodes well for where things are going, because beyond the goals, Haight was noticeable in Iowa’s other games. He should be generating plenty of chances down the stretch.

Islanders Pick Alex Jefferies Off To Hot Start As A Pro

I’ve always thought Alex Jefferies was underappreciated in prospect circles. Part of that was because he was playing at Merrimack and not one of the big college programs that has a lot of NHL prospects, but he was an outstanding player in the NCAA. He also helped Merrimack become more competitive and challenge those top teams over the last three seasons in particular.

Now in his first full professional season with the Bridgeport Islanders, the 2020 fourth-round pick is showing no signs of difficulty with the transition. He appeared in 12 games with Bridgeport at the end of last season and scored seven points. Through his first four games of the 2024-25 campaign, Jefferies has five points including three goals.

Jefferies really grew his game over his four NCAA seasons, especially considering he went direct to college from prep school. Jefferies has good size, can get to the interior and always seems to put himself in good positions to score. The Islanders do not have a ton of high-end prospects in their system, but I think they’re going to get some serious NHL games out of Jefferies in the near future.

Calgary’s Rory Kerins Is The AHL Player Of The Week

When you look atop the AHL scoring leaderboard, you’re going to find Kerins looking back at you. Through five games, the 2020 sixth-rounder has a league-best seven goals and eight points for the Calgary Wranglers. 

The third-year pro has been unstoppable early, scoring in a variety of ways and getting involved in one of the AHL’s most potent offensive attacks early on in the season. Kerins has points in all but one game so far this season and has multi-goal efforts in three of his five contests. 

The 22-year-old was just named AHL Player of the Week for a five-goal week that included a hat trick in a 3-1 win over Coachella Valley and two goals in a 4-3 win over Henderson. 

As a guy who has gone from low-round draft pick, to the ECHL with the Rapid City Rush to a contributor for the Wranglers, he’s progressing in a very positive way. I would not anticipate this hot scoring start to become the norm for him, but this hot start has been earned by a good work ethic off the puck and an ability to play on the interior more.

Capitals’ Ivan Miroshnichenko Can’t Stop Scoring For Hershey

We’re starting to get to the point where I wonder if AHL fans should make sure they get a glimpse of Miroshnichenko while they still can because I don’t think he’s long for the league. The 2022 first-rounder has been outstanding in the early goings for the Hershey Bears and is starting to look like one of the most dangerous goal scorers in the AHL.

Through five games, the 20-year-old has five goals and seven points. He had his second three-point effort in a 5-0 win over the Chicago Wolves. Miroshnichenko has also poured 18 shots on goal so far this season, including an eight-shot effort in his hat-trick scoring game against the Cleveland Monsters.

He is putting himself in great positions to score and his shot has been absolutely lethal. The youngster has been through a lot in his life, but considering he’s only two years removed from a cancer battle and is playing this well, you can’t help but marvel at where his game is at.

Bruins’ Fabian Lysell Flashing Skill In Providence

This feels like a make-or-break season for Lysell, who is entering his third AHL campaign. The 2021 first-rounder has shown that he can score at the AHL level, with his point total growing over each of the last two seasons. This year, he has to prove he can dominate at this level and force the Bruins to put him into their NHL lineup.

It’s a tough lineup to crack with so much veteran talent, but Boston didn’t draft him 21st overall to be a star in Providence. However, the goal that Lysell scored in a 4-2 loss to Springfield Saturday was a good reminder of the way that his skill and speed can change a game.

Fabian Lysell, you’re just showing off with these moves 😮@AHLBruins | #AHLBruins@TheAHL | #AHL | #PROvsSPR@NHLBruins | #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/2J3UEiO6sl

— FloHockey (@FloHockey) October 20, 2024

Lysell is an average sized player who still probably can afford to get stronger, but his quick hands can be such an equalizer for him. Being evasive and deadly on the rush could get him into an NHL lineup sooner than later. There’s more for him to prove, but the more he does things like that, the more he can show there’s a place for him at the next level.

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