Hurricanes’ Goalie Amir Miftakhov Returns to the KHL

Russian goalie Amir Miftakhov has left the Carolina Hurricanes organization as he signed a two-year deal with the Shanghai Dragons of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).

Originally selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the sixth round, 186th overall, of the 2020 NHL Draft, Miftakhov returned to North America last summer after establishing himself as one of the KHL’s most reliable goaltenders with Ak Bars Kazan, posting a 13-11-3 record, a 2.18 goals-against average, a .927 save percentage, and four shutouts in 30 games during the 2024-25 season.

Before joining the Carolina Hurricanes organization, the 26-year-old had appeared in 82 KHL games, going 38-29-4 with a 2.19 GAA, .922 save percentage, and 11 shutouts. He spent the 2025-26 season with the Chicago Wolves, recording a 12-8-7 record, a 3.25 GAA, a .888 save percentage, and two shutouts in 28 AHL appearances before becoming an unrestricted free agent this offseason.

It was Miftakhov’s second stint in North America, after spending the 2021-22 campaign split between the Syracuse Crunch and the Orlando Polar Bears of the ECHL. He has now signed with the Shanghai Dragons, the KHL’s Chinese franchise, whose president is former NHL superstar Ilya Kovalchuk and who is still playing its games in St. Petersburg, Russia, with select games played at home before the planned return to the Asian country in 2027-28. Miftakhov may do the move as the team’s starting netminder.