Ilya Samsonov

He was eventually drafted 22nd overall by the Washington Capitals despite missing the scouting combine in Buffalo and conducting no interviews with the team.

Following his debut win, Samsonov subsequently won 10 more to become only the third NHL rookie goalie to win his first eleven contests and the first since 1973–74.

Ilya Alexeyevich Samsonov (, Илья Алексеевич Самсонов; born 22 February 1997) is a Russian professional ice hockey goaltender for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Samsonov was born on 22 February 1997, in Magnitogorsk, Russia to mother Natalya.

Samsonov became a fan of ice hockey due to the influence of his grandfather, and chose the position of goaltender because he liked the look of the equipment.

He subsequently became the first goaltender drafted in the first round since 2012 and only the third in franchise history when he was drafted 22nd overall.

Samsonov was chosen in the first round despite missing the scouting combine in Buffalo and conducting no interviews with the Capitals.

Growing up in Magnitogorsk, Russia, Samsonov made his Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) debut playing in relief with Metallurg Magnitogorsk during the 2014–15 KHL season.

Growing up in Russia, Samsonov began playing junior hockey with the Stalnye Lisy for the 2014–15 season.

While playing with the Lisy, Samsonov posted an 11–4–1 record, 2.66 goals against average, and a .918 save percentage.

As a result of his junior play, Samsonov made his Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) debut playing in relief with Metallurg Magnitogorsk on 11 December 2014, against HC Sibir Novosibirsk.

After a successful junior season with Metallurg's Junior club, Stalnye Lisy, Samsonov was ranked as the top European Goalie in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.

Following the 2015 Draft, Samsonov returned to the KHL where he posted a 6–4–3 record with a 2.04 goals against average and .925 save percentage through 19 games.

Samsonov was ranked as the top European Goalie eligible for the 2015 NHL Entry Draft and drew comparisons to Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Following the draft, Samsonov returned to the Metallurg Magnitogorsk for the 2015–16 season where he posted a 6–4–3 record with a 2.04 goals against average and .925 save percentage through 19 games.

He played a backup role during the 2016 Gagarin Cup playoffs but made six appearances and posted a 2–2–0 record with a 2.29 GAA and a .916 save percentage.

Samsonov subsequently helped the Magnitogorsk win the 2016 Gagarin Cup.

Once the season concluded, Samsonov attended the Capitals 2016 Development Camp and adjusted to North American ice.

Due to the language barrier, Capitals senior director of communications Sergey Kocharov was on the ice when Samsonov was conducting drills during their Development Camp.

After spending time with the Capitals, Samsonov returned to Magnitogorsk for the 2016–17 KHL season.

He began the season strong by posting a 6–0–0 record and earned a .919 save percentage and 2.26 goals against average through 10 games played.

Samsonov concluded the season posting a 15–3–5 record, a save percentage of .936, and a goals against average of 2.13 through 27 games.

Following the 2017–18 KHL season, Samsonov embarked on his NHL career by signing a three-year, entry-level contract with the Washington Capitals.

In his final KHL season, Samsonov began by posting a 6–5–1 record with a 2.77 goals against average and a .912 save percentage by November 2017.

However, he then suffered a concussion during a 3–1 loss to the HC Lada Togliatti after he entered the game in relief of starter Vasily Koshechkin.

Samsonov finished the 2017–18 KHL season with a 12–9–1 record, a save percentage of .926, and a goals against average of 2.31 through 26 games.

He was the chosen starter for Game 1 of the 2017 Gagarin Cup playoffs and he saved 26 of the 28 shots to lead the team to a win.

Samsonov participated in the Capitals training camp but was re-assigned to their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Hershey Bears, prior to the start of the 2018–19 season.

He eventually made his NHL debut the following season while playing in a primary backup role to starter Braden Holtby.

Following the 2017–18 season, Samsonov embarked on his NHL career by signing a three-year, entry-level contract with the Washington Capitals on 4 May 2018.

After the signing, the Capitals traded Philipp Grubauer to the Colorado Avalanche leaving a backup goaltending spot available which Samsonov was expected to eventually fill.

Off the ice, he hired an English tutor to assist with the language barrier and worked on adjusting to North American rink sizes.

In September, Samsonov participated in the Capitals training camp but was re-assigned to their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Hershey Bears, prior to the start of the 2018–19 season.

Upon joining the Bears, Samsonov and the team struggled in their first five games.

They recorded no points through five games and Samsonov suffered a lower-body injury that took him nearly a week to recover.

He eventually earned his first AHL win on 1 November in a shootout over the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins by stopping 19 of 22 shots.

He posted a 3–5–0 record with a 3.73 goals against average before being called up to serve as backup for Pheonix Copley.

He did not make his NHL debut during the call up and was re-assigned to the AHL on 19 November.

Once Samsonov was returned to the Bears, he continued to struggle and was replaced by Vítek Vaněček who tallied a 17–10–5 record through 32 games.

However, Samsonov began to improve during the second half of the season and recorded two shutouts.