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Arthur Kaliyev excelled in a challenging AHL season, scoring 39 goals and 28 assists for the Belleville Senators, who finished last in their division. Despite the team's struggles, he was recognized as a top player and led the league in goals.
The American Hockey League announced its first and second teams this week, recognizing the best players at every position this season. The only player to make the list who wonât be playing the Calder Cup Playoffs is Arthur Kaliyev. He was a star this season and carried the Belleville Senators' offense. The problem is that the rest of the team struggled and finished in last place in the North Division.
On the Senators team that didnât have much help around him, Kaliyev carried the offense. He was driving play and both finding open skaters while finding the back of the net himself, oftentimes. His 39 goals and 28 assists say a lot but hardly tell the full story.
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What makes his season better is that he was producing at a high level on a team where everything around him was falling apart. The Senaotrs got off to a slow start and replaced their head coach midseason. By the end, the team was checked out and playing out the string. Not Kaliyev. He kept playing at a high level to ultimately lead the league in goals.
Kaliyev fueled an offense that was above average, scoring 3.1 goals per game. However, he also helped out the younger and developing skaters on the team. While the Senators donât have a surplus of prospects, the few who were on the team benefited from Kaliyevâs offense, notably the scoring defenseman Carter Yakemchuk.
He also emerged as one of the leaders on the AHL team. The Senators had a leadership void following the coaching change, with Andrew Campbell catching up and relying on the veterans to help him out. Kaliyev did just that.
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The Senators didnât have a great veteran presence, which explains in part their last-place finish in the North Division. It set them back and prevented key prospects from developing. Kaliyev was a bright spot and proved heâs a building block in the AHL, a key player to build around in the future.
Arthur Kaliyev scored 39 goals and provided 28 assists during the AHL season.
The Belleville Senators struggled due to a slow start, a midseason coaching change, and overall poor team performance, finishing last in the North Division.
Arthur Kaliyev maintained high performance levels, leading the league in goals while consistently driving play and contributing offensively.

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Kaliyev struggled early on in his NHL career. He wasnât a good player on the Los Angeles Kings and struggled to carve out a full-time role. Heâs also had plenty of off-the-ice issues that have prevented NHL teams from giving him a chance.
That said, heâs still a young player in the big picture, a 24-year-old who, like the prospects he mentors, is still learning the game. Thereâs enough time for him to return to the NHL, and heâs talented enough on the offensive end to do so. This season proved it.