Yaroslav Askarov got the start Saturday night against the Washington Capitals and won the game in a shootout for his first career NHL win.
After Yaroslav Askarov stepped in to play the third period against the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday night, he said, " I feel I'm ready to play now."
He backed that up with a solid performance and shootout win against fellow Russian Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals on Saturday night.
After Juuse Saros played the Friday night game in Detroit and Kevin Lankinen was out with illness, Askarov got the start against the Capitals in the second game of Nashville's back to back. He stopped 27 of 29 shots including two shorthanded chances and one power play shot. In his first NHL win, Askarov earned a .931 save percentage.
When Askarov was asked about the difference between his NHL debut on January 12, 2023 and his play in the third period against Carolina on December 27, he talked about the experience he gained between those two NHL games.
"Right now I have more experience," Askarov said. "Just played in the AHL playoff and played a lot in the last season and this season around fifteen games."
Askarov was an important piece for the Milwaukee Admirals getting to and deep into the 2022-2023 AHL playoffs. After playing 48 regular season games, Askarov played 15 games as the Admirals made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals. In the post season, Askarov earned a .908 save percentage and 2.45 goals against average. The long season and heavy workload caught up with Askarov a bit down the stretch, and goaltender Devin Cooley stepped in for the Admirals late in the postseason run.
Before coming to North America and joining the Admirals, Askarov only played 15 games between the VHL and KHL in 2021-2022. While that may have made some think the young goaltender would show up rusty, it actually resulted in Askarov coming to the AHL hungry to play.
Nashville was hungry to get their first look at Askarov, too. There's been much buzz surrounding him since the Predators drafted the Russian with their eleventh overall pick in the 2020 draft. Talk of his aggressive goaltending style had many Predators fans curious about his on ice play, but his engaging personality off ice and online presence have only added to his popularity. The play and personality combined for one of the most entertaining Admirals moments in recent history as Askarov bench pressed the net after a 45 save shootout win against the Rockford Ice Hogs last season.
Although he didn't bench press the net at Capital One Arena, Askarov did feel amazing after getting the win.
"It's awesome. Best feeling after a win," Askarov said postgame. "It's crazy. It's nice feeling."
And how was stopping Russian hockey star Alex Ovechkin in the shootout?
"The best," Askarov said laughing. "It's the best feeling."