Jan 29, 2024
Ruslan Iskhakov is having another strong season with the Bridgeport Islanders. So good, in fact, that he’s headed to San Jose this weekend to represent Bridgeport at the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic, presented by Tech CU.
Iskhakov has recorded a team-high 13 goals, 20 assists and 33 points through the first 40 games of his sophomore season in the American Hockey League – reaching a new level of confidence along the way.
“He’s just more comfortable overall,” Head Coach Rick Kowalsky said earlier this month. “I talked to him a little bit in training camp about being tenacious. He has that ability to really hunt pucks down and strip them from guys. He demands the puck and wants the puck a lot.”
Despite Bridgeport’s struggles this season, Iskhakov’s performance is a huge positive for the team.
“I’ve been definitely feeling more comfortable,” Iskhakov said. “I don’t want to say I feel like a veteran because it’s only my second year, but I just feel better. We have a young team, so I think we just got to find a way to win and just keep battling all the 60 minutes.”
Kowalsky pointed out how he sees the 23-year-old forward as a potential as a consistent top scorer this season, comparing him to last year’s top point leaders in Chris Terry and Andy Andreoff, who put up 78 and 65 points last season respectively.
“He’s kind of taken the role as ‘I’m the guy now,’” Kowalsky said. “Last year, we had Terry and Andreoff at the top of the standings, but [Iskhakov] has really emerged as that go-to guy offensively, whereas he was maybe second tier last year.”
Iskhakov is emerging as a standout player offensively and he’s been getting comfortable in that role. The highly-skilled forward came up big against the Charlotte Checkers on Jan. 7th, scoring in regulation and recording his fourth career OT winner by knocking in a rebound to win the contest 3-2.
The two-goal game extended his career-long point streak, which ended at 10 contests, while his fourth overtime goal tied the AHL single-season record. His performance earned him league-wide recognition as the AHL’s second star of the night for Jan. 7th.
Though the Russian winger has come a long way, he put up strong numbers in his rookie season last year. The Islanders’ 2018 second-round pick (43rd overall) racked up 51 points (17g, 34a) through 69 games, which led all rookies and was good for fourth on the…
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