SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League introduced as we speak that San Diego Gulls ahead Sasha Pastujov, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins ahead Ville Koivunen and Laval Rocket goaltender Cayden Primeau have been chosen because the league’s award winners for January.
Pastujov, the AHL Participant of the Month, recorded six objectives and 13 assists for 19 factors in 12 video games for San Diego throughout January.
Since Jan. 3, Pastujov has put collectively an 11-game scoring streak, tied for the longest within the AHL this season. He scored a purpose to assist erase a late two-goal deficit at Coachella Valley on Jan. 4, and matched a franchise file for assists in a sport with 4 helpers in a 5-1 win over Iowa on Jan. 8. Pastujov then scored the game-winning purpose in a 3-2 resolution over Tucson on Jan. 10, and recorded a purpose and two assists vs. Iowa on Jan. 15 and once more at Calgary on Jan. 25.
Pastujov has notched 12 objectives and 17 assists for a team-best 29 factors in 27 video games for the Gulls after starting the season with Tulsa (ECHL). The 21-year-old native of Bradenton, Fla., has already surpassed his offensive totals from his 2023-24 rookie season, when he notched 10 objectives and 13 assists in 46 video games with San Diego. Pastujov was chosen by Anaheim within the third spherical of the 2021 NHL Draft.
Koivunen, the AHL Rookie of the Month, registered 9 objectives and 5 assists for 14 factors together with a plus-11 score in 11 video games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in January.
Koivunen’s month was highlighted by three standout performances. On Jan. 8 at Toronto, Koivunen registered the primary hat trick of his AHL profession and in addition chipped in an help because the Penguins doubled up the Marlies, 6-3. On Jan. 26, he notched 4 assists in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s 5-1 win over Lehigh Valley. And on Jan. 29, Koivunen scored 4 objectives – the primary such sport by a Penguins skater since 2016 – in a 9-0 victory over Hershey.
Koivunen, 21, is in his first full season in North America after enjoying for Karpat within the Finnish Liiga, and presently leads all AHL rookies in scoring with 36 factors (15 objectives, 21 assists) in 39 video games. The native of Oulu, Finland, was a second-round alternative by Carolina within the 2021 NHL Draft and was acquired by the Pittsburgh Penguins on Mar. 7, 2024, as a part of the multi-player deal that despatched Jake Guentzel to the Hurricanes.
Primeau, the AHL Goaltender of the Month, gained his first eight begins within the AHL this season, ending January with a file of 8-0-0, a 1.73 goals-against common and a .932 save share.
Assigned to Laval on Dec. 29, Primeau made his season debut with the Rocket on Jan. 3 and stopped 27 of 28 pictures in a 2-1 additional time victory over Abbotsford. He earned a shutout with 16 stops at Cleveland on Jan. 10, and made 17 saves on Jan. 22 to assist the Rocket defeat the two-time defending Calder Cup champions from Hershey. He closed out the month by turning apart 30 pictures in a 3-1 win over Hartford on Jan. 31.
Primeau was a seventh-round choose by Montreal within the 2017 NHL Draft, and has gone on to play 55 video games with the Canadiens, together with 11 appearances this season. In 132 AHL contests with Laval over his six professional seasons, the 25-year-old native of Voorhees, N.J., has a file of 72-42-12 with a 2.68 GAA, a .910 save share and 12 shutouts.
