Springfield, Massachusetts. …The American Hockey League announced today that San Diego Gulls are moving forward Sasha PastujovWilkes-Barry/Scranton Penguin Ville Koivunen and the Raval Rockets goalkeeper Cayden Primeau Has been selected as the league winner for January.
Pastujov, AHL Players This MonthHe recorded 6 goals and 13 assists in 12 games for San Diego in January, scoring 19 points.
Pastujov has compiled 11 scoring streaks since January 3 and has the longest AHL game this season. He scored a goal to help erase the late deficits of both targets at Coachella Valley on January 4 and earned a franchise record with assists in a 5-1 win over Iowa on January 8 . A 3-2 decision against Tucson on January 10 won the game goal and made two assists against Iowa on January 15 and played again in Calgary on January 25 .
Pastujov scored 12 goals and 17 assists in 27 games after the start of the season with Tulsa (ECHL), and scored 27-game best 29 points in 27 games. The 21-year-old, from Bradenton, Florida, surpassed his offensive total since his 2023-24 rookie season, when he scored 10 goals and 13 assists in 46 games against San Diego. Pastujov was selected by Anaheim in the third round of the 2021 NHL Draft.
Koivunen, AHL’s newest show this monthscored 14 points with 9 goals and 5 assists in 11 games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in January and scored 11 points.
Koivunen’s month was highlighted with three outstanding performances. On January 8, in Toronto, Koivunen registered his first hat-trick in his AHL career and also received an assist when the Penguins doubled Maris 6-3. On January 26, he received four assists in a 5-1 win over Lehigh Valley by Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. On January 29, Koivunen scored four goals in a 9-0 victory over Hershey since 2016, the first game for the Penguin Skaters.
Koivunen, 21, is leading all AHL rookies in 39 games with 36 points (15 goals, 21 assists) in his first full season in North America. The Finnish Oulu native is Carolina’s second round pick in the 2021 NHL draft and was acquired by the Pittsburgh Penguins on March 7, 2024 as part of a multiplayer deal sent Jake Guentzel to hurricane.
Primeau, AHL goalkeeper this monthwon his first eight games of the AHL this season and ended his January record with an 8-0-0 record, with an average of 1.73 goals and a 0.932 percentage savings.
Primeau was assigned to Laval on December 29 and debuted with the Rockets on January 3, and stopped 27 of 28 shots in a 2-1 win over Abbotsford. He won 16 suspensions in Cleveland on January 10 and made 17 saves on January 22 to help the Rockets defeat Hershey to defend the Calder Cup twice. He ended the month with 30 shots in a 3-1 win over Hartford on January 31.
Primeau is Montreal’s seventh round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft and has played 55 games with the Canadiens, including 11 games this season. In his six professional seasons, the 25-year-old Voorhees, New Jersey native scored 72-42-12, 2.68 GAA, .910 province in 132 AHL games against Laval in his six professional seasons. The percentage of profit and 12 closings.
