<p>There’s something about minor league sports and promotional nights. If the rule is “the whackier, the better,” then the Milwaukee Admirals are definitely “raising the bar.” </p>



<p>The Nashville Predators’ AHL affiliate will be giving out figurines of goaltender Yaroslav Askarov bench-pressing a net to the first 2,500 fans at their March 9, 2024 game against the Grand Rapids Griffins.</p>


<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">I somehow missed this earlier, but the Milwaukee Admirals are giving away this Yaroslav Askarov figurine during their March 9 game against Grand Rapids</p>
<p>This may just be one of the best marketing tools I've ever seen <a href="https://t.co/fS1NGri6bp">pic.twitter.com/fS1NGri6bp</a></p>
<p>— Michael Gallagher (@MGsports_) <a href="https://twitter.com/MGsports_/status/1719903801631715768?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 2, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>



<p>The figurine is a callback to February 2023 when the netminder celebrated a 2-1 shootout win against the Rockford IceHogs by “<a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/yaroslav-askarov-pumps-some-iron-after-a-big-shootout-win">pumping iron</a>.” To his credit, he made 45 saves in the 65 minutes before to get the Admirals to a shootout.</p><div class="injected-ad injected-video" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="0" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="149"></div>


<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Yaroslav Askarov's really raising the bar for goalie celebrations. 🏋️‍♂️ </p>
<p>(🎥: <a href="https://twitter.com/TheAHL?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAHL</a>) <a href="https://t.co/ad9WauPm4B">pic.twitter.com/ad9WauPm4B</a></p>
<p>— NHL (@NHL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NHL/status/1624549705857343493?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
<p> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>



<p>The clip went viral and became the talk of the hockey world. In an <a href="https://www.shapshotshockey.com/p/top-goalie-prospect-yaroslav-askarov">interview with Sean Shapiro</a> last March, Askarov said the celebration was good for hockey.</p>



<p>“It’s a new celly, it gets people talking about hockey,” said Askarov. “In hockey it’s not common for people to show personality, so when people do that, I think it’s great for the game. </p>



<p>“People who don’t know hockey have no reason to watch hockey if we don’t have personality,” he continued.</p>



<p>In four games this season, the 21-year-old goaltender has a 3-1-0 record with a .931 save percentage.</p>



<p>Askarov was drafted 11th overall in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. After three seasons in the KHL with St. Petersburg SKA, Askarov went to North America and spent the 2022-23 season with the Admirals, posting a 26-16-5 record with a .911 save percentage and 2.69 goals-against-average in 48 appearances.</p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="1" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="169"></div>



<p>He made his NHL debut on Jan. 12, 2023 in a 4-3 losing effort, stopping 31 of 35 shots faced. </p>



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