Former NY Islanders goaltender now in charge of developing the NHL's top goaltending prospect

The Nashville Predators have made the most headlines across the NHL this off-season, first signing, Steven Stamkos and Jordan Marchessault at the start of free agency, and most recently trading away the league's top goaltending prospect, Yaroslav Askarov, to the San Jose Sharks.

Askarov is the most recent addition to one of the league's top prospect pools, which includes this year's top overall draft pick, Macklin Cellebrini.

Former NY Islanders goaltender, Evgeni Nabokov, who began his NHL career with the Sharks during the 1999-2000 season, returned to Northern California to become the Sharks Goaltender Development Coach after retirement and now is in the role of Director of Goaltending.

Not a bad having Evegeni Nabokov as a mentor

The former Islanders netminder will now be responsible for developing the league's top goalie prospect into what the organization hopes is a superstar.

"This is not just another goalie that we acquired," Nabokov told Sergey Demidov of RG.org. "He wants to be a franchise goalie, and we want to help him with that. But to achieve that, you need many qualities. You don't just have to be a good goalie on the ice, but you also have to be hard-working, mentally stable, get along with your teammates, be a leader."

Askarov, 22, was drafted by the Predators 11th overall in 2020. He spent the last two seasons playing for the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL, but with the recent 8-year extension given to goaltender Juuse Saros, there was no immediate path to the NHL for the young Russian prospect. GM of the Sharks, Mike Grier, swooped in, acquiring Askarov from Barry Trotz, and now has the team's goaltender of the future.

"Everyone understands that the team is being rebuilt, we have a lot of young guys," Nabokov said. "But this means that everyone has a chance to prove themselves and become part of the team's future core."

Askarov signed a 2-year, $2M AAV extension with the Sharks on Friday, and will battle it out with veterans Mackenzie Blackwood and Vitek Vanecek to be the starter on opening night.