Hot on the heels of a shutout yesterday, Artur Akhtyamov signed a three-year extension that begins next season with an AAV of $900,000.

The first year, per Puckpedia, is a two-way deal with a minors salary of $300,000. The final two years are one-way deals.

He is 27 and a UFA when it expires.

In the AHL, Akhtyamov is 18th in Save % for qualified goalies (at least 1,140 minutes played) with 0.904. He has faced the ninth most Shots on Goal. Usually the AHL has a small handful of extremely successful goalies. This year that's Michael DePietro with .936, Carl Lindbom with .927 and Sebastian Cossa, Sergei Murashov and Jacob Fowler with over .915. Fowler is currently being touted as the next great Habs goalie.

Akhtyamov gets to be the second-ranked NHL goalie on Moneypuck for Goals Saved Over Expected per 60 by virtue of his one appearance for 10 minutes of a game he was supposed to be a backup where he faced 11 unblocked shots and did not allow a goal. All of that leaves his actual future NHL-playability a very open question.

Cayden Primeau has a better Save % in the AHL than Akhtyamov.

Mo!

BO!

It was 3-0 Leafs at the half. Really, I'm not making this up.

It was still 3-0 after two.

The Wild came back with two goals in like three seconds, and the tank crowd were all happy. Matt Knies scored an ENG and I was happy.

Leafs win in a fun game. That's what it's supposed to be about.

Okay, 23 seconds, whatever.

Because of the reaction to the Gudas suspension, everyone is talking about it.

Player safety becomes front-burner issue at GM meetings after Gudas fallout
Connected

McDavid's comments:

Connor McDavid believes NHL should do review of player safety
Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid, who acknowledged the difficulty of the job the department of player safety has, but suggested the process itself may need another look.
Sportsnet.caSportsnet Staff

I want to try to succinctly sum up my thoughts on this, but it's complicated:

The NHLPA filing grievances is the point at which the Player Safety process – which is part of the entertainment business of the NHL – crosses over into the real world. And for many people, what they want is some transgressive and dramatic statements from the PA to pass around on social media for an afternoon. But the PA actually works within the internal system, and also crosses over to reality in terms of protecting individual rights of players.

So when they make a presentation to DoPS, as they are said to have done regarding Gudas, what they are saying is that within the existing history of DoPS, 5 games is extreme and their job is to say that on behalf of Gudas because all the players are their responsibility. Only someone who does not understand how individual rights work wants the PA to judge Gudas and refuse to represent him. Remember Jason Spezza successfully got his suspension reduced, and he did because it was an egregious number of games – as I argued at the time – within the context of prior acts.

Step outside the system, and the NHLPA now represents all players who have a variety of opinions on suspensions. They don't all necessarily agree with McDavid. But to collectively bargain changes, they have to give something up. Do they want that?

I know what I want, but I shouldn't impose that on the players and assume they think the same as me. Suspensions for plays that happen because a lower skilled player uses the risk of injury to impede a skilled player should be much longer. Hits to the head should never involve discussion of "the stick rode up" and they should be the longest. The fines are a waste of time.

But what will the players who agree with me give up to get the NHL to agree to that? Because the NHL's goal here, make no mistake, is to never suspend anyone. They do it grudgingly because they don't want anyone playing less. The do it at all because they recognize that having a star player miss the playoffs is bad. And so, you have to wonder if things had been different, would Gudas sit longer?

It will be interesting to see if this goes anywhere but talk. But kudos to McDavid – who shares Matthews' agent – for speaking up.

And that's Monday's business. The Leafs play, wait for it... a back-to-back this weekend, but first they pop right back home to face the Islanders on Tuesday.

From The Branches