Last season turned out to be mixed for Ak Bars goalie Amir Miftakhov. After a strong first half of the regular season in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), during which the netminder ranked among the leaders in goaltending stats, came a less successful second half, followed by only two appearances in the playoffs out of a possible 13. Despite this, in the upcoming season, he will get the chance to once again test himself in the NHL with a Stanley Cup contender — the Carolina Hurricanes, where his childhood friend, forward Andrei Svechnikov, plays. In this translated interview, originally appearing on the Russian website Evening Kazan, the goalie spoke in detail about the negotiations with Carolina, his NHL dream, the season with Ak Bars, and his friendship with Dmitrij Jaskin.
**You can read the interview in Miftakhov’s native Russian by Pavel Melnikov on Evening Kazan here**
The goalie had a busy offseason, first signing his contract with the Hurricanes, then running into visa problems that made his preseason even more challenging. “Camp starts in mid-September. I don’t know about the games yet; I haven’t checked. I’m preparing for that date, but honestly I’d like to already be in Raleigh even earlier,” Miftakhov explains. “If I had flown a week ago, it would’ve been perfect — more time to adapt and take care of daily-life matters. It’s good that Andrei Svechnikov is there for me. We’ve already talked — at first I’ll be living with him. But I still need to adjust to the time zone, the food, the water. All of that affects the adaptation.”
Amir Miftakhov of Team Russia (Russia Hockey/FHR.RU)
Adaptation is still a challenge, even if Miftakhov already spent a season within the Tampa Bay Lightning system in 2021-22. The Lightning originally drafted him in 2020. “Of course, adaptation is very important,” the goalie confirms. “When I first came to Tampa, I went to Syracuse, the farm club, a month before camp. Back then I thought everything was fine, that I’d adjusted to the time zone, but then my body, so to speak, ‘taught me a lesson,’ reacted to the changes. That’s when I realized what the guys had been talking about. Now I know exactly what I need to go through. I’m ready for it.”
Svechnikov’s Influence
Miftakhov has yet to visit Raleigh. “Honestly, I haven’t been there yet. I only talked with Andrei back in his first year there. Even then, he told me everything. Plus now, before I signed, we discussed it all. According to him, the city is calm, the fans are great and passionate about hockey. I think once I make it to the NHL, I’ll be able to feel their support myself.”
Everything hints at the fact that Svechnikov played no small part in Miftakhov’s move. “Of course, he was involved. His presence on the team was definitely one of the main factors why I’m moving specifically to Carolina,” he says. “It’s not like he went around talking to people, as some might think. Naturally, he wanted me to come, but the situation was different. After my first year back in the KHL, I already had a contract sitting on the table. First, Andrei texted me saying my agent would be calling about Carolina wanting to sign me. He was one of the first to find out. I was surprised, thought he was joking. Turned out it was serious. A few hours later, Dan Milstein called me and explained the situation with Carolina: “The contract is on the table. You say yes, we sign, and you’re on a plane to America.”
According to Miftakhov, that happened during the KHL Final against CSKA Moscow in 2023. “We were in talks with Ak Bars about a contract at the time,” he recalls. “We were in constant contact with them. And then came this call. I can’t even describe what I felt then… It wasn’t exactly a surprise. Let me tell you a story — you’ll understand. Back in 2018 or 2019, I was seriously following the draft, asking the screen for Carolina to pick me, because my close friend Andrei was there. That was our dream. And now — such a call. There wasn’t much time to think. I spoke with my agents, with Ak Bars’ management, with my family, and decided to stay in Kazan, because I felt that at that moment developing there was the better path.”
Related: Hurricanes’ Pyotr Kochetkov Reflects on Past Season, Career & Life Changes
“I signed a two-year contract and put all thoughts of North America completely out of my mind, dedicating myself to my hometown club. During the season, news kept popping up, including from Andrei himself, that people were approaching him, asking about me — whether I’d be coming or not. I had no answer: the season was going, and it was going well. In the winter, as you know, I even had another two-year offer from Ak Bars before the deadline, but I immediately said, ‘I like the offer, I like playing for Ak Bars, but right now I don’t want to think about anything except the season.‘ We agreed to talk after the season.”
He then went on to explain how Svechnikov was involved in his signing. “Either the general manager or the owner approached Andrei. They asked him, ‘Is this your friend? We want to sign him.‘ Two seasons later, their interest hadn’t gone anywhere. For me, that was a sign: I had to think seriously about this decision. It wasn’t easy. Maybe I should’ve played another year or two in Kazan, but I just couldn’t turn down the chance to play for Carolina alongside my friend. Over all these years, I’ve only ever heard the best things about the organization from him. That’s why I made Carolina my priority.”
Amir Miftakhov, HC Ak Bars (Photo Credit: HC Ak Bars)
As he said that Carolina was his priority, it means that other teams were interested as well. “There were,” he confirms. “We discussed it with my agent. But even back then, I had already decided: if I go to the NHL, I’ll go only to the Hurricanes. I felt their interest in having me in the organization, and it didn’t fade — it only grew over time.”
He isn’t sure about what other teams were hunting for him. “Honestly, I didn’t even find out — it was all with my agent,” Miftakhov explains. “Once I understood that Carolina was waiting for me, I didn’t even think about anything else. If it weren’t the Hurricanes, and another club had offered me a contract while I also had the one from Ak Bars, I would have thought about it longer and prioritized Ak Bars.”
No Return in Mind
This offseason, Miftakhov signed a two-way deal with the Canes. “I only spoke with the goalie coaches. The general manager and head coach talked with my agent. The coaches talked about the usual things: when they would like me to come, how the work process will go, and what my role will be. As of today, it all depends on me. They’re waiting for me in the NHL — they say I’ll have opportunities. We mostly talked about first coming over, meeting in person, and then everything will be clearer.”
In Carolina, Miftakhov will have two strong goalies in front of him in Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov. At the moment, it looks like he’ll be the third choice. “For now, that’s the case,” he says. “I always treat competition well. It’s leaving your comfort zone no matter what. Here, in Kazan, I have everything: support, friends, I’ve spent my whole life here, everything is set up. There are no factors reducing my comfort. Competition means growth, new experience, a new level. I’ll try to win it and secure my place in the NHL with the Carolina Hurricanes. I want to spend a long part of my career there. A big plus is that my friend is there. It will be easier psychologically. For him, too, probably in some way. We’ve been together 24/7 since childhood — only went home to sleep. In fact, he just texted me. I can’t wait to step onto the ice for my first practice.”
Every summer, several KHL players head to America, and in their contracts, there’s often a clause about possibly returning if they get sent down to the American Hockey League (AHL). “As far as I know, I don’t have anything of the sort,” Miftakhov says. “I wasn’t planning to insure myself this way; I didn’t even discuss including that clause with my agent. I don’t want to leave myself the thought that I could return to Russia at any moment. I have a dream, and I want to fulfill it: to establish myself in the NHL, to win the Stanley Cup. I don’t want to go there thinking, ‘what if it doesn’t work out.’”
Battling Injuries
Last season, Miftakhov had a rough start to the season. “I’m not the kind of guy who likes to check stats or anything,” the goalie explains. “All my attention is only on the ice. I was just trying to help my team win every game, to give them a chance to win. Probably the key factor was the focus on my game — I dialed that up to the maximum last season. And of course, a lot of things came together: the right age, the injury two seasons ago that gave me extra motivation, I really missed hockey — I wanted to get out there, play, and win. Sometimes emotions even spilled out — but that was just the desire to win.”
Amir Miftakhov, HC Ak Bars (Photo Credit: HC Ak Bars)
That unconfident play had its consequences. “Then my ice time dropped, and that made things a bit uncomfortable. When you’re in game rhythm, you’re more confident, and you don’t overthink. Of course, it’s all experience — you need to be ready for anything.” He also said that it’s not always easy to gain game pace when you’re not playing. “It all depends on your physical condition. These days, clubs are realizing that they need a strong group of goaltenders. No one knows what might happen, and the sport is becoming more injury-prone, faster.”
“Actually… back in school, I played every game of the season. Of course, in terms of workload, ‘then’ and ‘now’ are completely different categories, but I’m mostly talking about the psychology of it. From that perspective, I feel more comfortable playing all the time. Naturally, when you have two top-level goalies on the roster, it’s a plus for the organization — and good for us too. We always get a chance to rest, while still playing often. Still, when you play too much, all sorts of things pile up: no time for training, no time to work on improving skills in practice. But personally, I love playing constantly. Even if the game doesn’t go well and we lose, I forget it right away. I don’t even like to dissect my mistakes too much, because I know I’ll go out in the next game and win. But when you lose a game and then get benched — that’s when you start digging into yourself.”
Last season can be called a turning point for Miftakhov. He saw changes in many different areas. “Psychology and discipline came to the forefront,” he says. “Throughout the whole season, I managed to approach many things in the right way while preparing for games: no unnecessary thoughts, even if you’re not playing for a while. If you’re given a certain amount of ice time — that means you must be ready to play it and prove yourself. It all comes down to that. There’s no other option. Just work hard. Nothing more to add. Yes, many people say that the first half was the best part of the season for me, but mentally, the whole season was steady.”
Friendship With Dmitrij Jaskin
The goalie is also a close friend of former NHL player Dmitrij Jaskin. The forward spent nine seasons in North America and played side-by-side with Miftakhov in his last two seasons with Ak Bars. “Ever since we started playing together, we’ve always helped each other, found topics to discuss, and agreed on things,” he says about their friendship. “We never had disagreements. Actually, we first met by chance: he had just signed with Ak Bars, and I bumped into him at the airport in Turkey. We shook hands. I’m glad to have such a friend.”
The two talked a lot about Miftakhov’s move overseas, including the Hurricanes. “I wouldn’t say he was trying to talk me out of it or push me there. We just discussed it a lot. Probably every single day until I signed with Carolina — wherever we were, we kept going over it. When it was officially announced, we calmed down a bit, but even now we keep talking about it: he gives me advice, even on everyday matters. But no, he didn’t try to dissuade me. We just discussed what things might be like over there and what they might be like here. He asked me the right questions.” They also enjoy playing the NHL video game franchise, although they will have to play online now.
They will have to break their routine a bit. “But we’ll have weekends,” he smiles. “We’ll always stay in touch. We’ll keep an eye on each other. I’ll keep watching Ak Bars — that’s my home club. Since childhood — first in the stands, then on the ice. I’m grateful to the club for raising me, for giving me the chance to sign an NHL contract, and for supporting me in this decision. That says a lot — the club has the right approach when it comes to developing its homegrown players. For me, it was a huge honor to play for Ak Bars. Now we’ll try to make it in the NHL.” As Miftakhov will have another chance in the AHL, his first game with the Hurricanes may not be too far away.
