Arthur Kaliyev

Arthur Kaliyev (; born June 26, 2001) is an Uzbekistan-born American professional ice hockey forward who is currently an unrestricted free agent. He most recently played for the Belleville Senators in the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the second round, 33rd overall, of the 2019 NHL entry draft. He also played for the New York Rangers.

Early life Kaliyev was born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, but his family moved to Staten Island, New York when he was two years old and later moved to Michigan at age 13. He represents the United States in international competition. As a rookie in 2017–18, Kaliyev scored 31 goals, 17 assists for 48 points in 68 regular season games, setting new franchise records for goals and points by a rookie. The Bulldogs advanced to the league championship and knocked off the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds to win the J. Ross Robertson Cup. In 21 playoff games, Kaliyev added three goals and 11 points. Hamilton was eliminated from contention in the semifinal by the Regina Pats and finished third in the tournament.

He followed that with 51 goals and 102 points for the Bulldogs in 2018–19, the youngest player in the OHL to score more than 40 goals that season and the first Bulldog to record 50 goals or 100 points. The Bulldogs qualified for the playoffs but were eliminated in the first round by the Ottawa 67's. In four playoff games, he tallied one goal and two points.

Professional Los Angeles Kings Despite his goal-scoring prowess, he was regarded as inconsistent, a weak skater, and a weak defender before the National Hockey League (NHL)'s 2019 entry draft. Kaliyev was subsequently selected in the second round with the 33rd overall pick by the Los Angeles Kings. On June 3, 2020, Kaliyev was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract by the Kings. He began the pandemic-shortened 2020–21 season with the Kings' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Ontario Reign. He spent the majority of the season with the Reign, marking 14 goals and 31 points in 40 games. He was returned to the Reign and the team qualified for the abbreviated 2021 Calder Cup playoffs. Ontario was eliminated in the opening round by the Colorado Eagles. Kaliyev went scoreless in the playoffs. In his first NHL full season, he played primarily on the fourth line alongside Blake Lizotte and Brendan Lemieux. In 80 games he scored 14 goals and 27 points in the regular season. In the seven games, Kaliyev went scoreless. He missed time in December with a lower body injury after blocking a shot. He finished the season with 13 goals and 28 points in 56 games. The Oilers eliminated the Kings, with Kaliyev appearing two of the playoff games, going scoreless.

Entering the 2023–24 season, he was suspended by the NHL for two pre-season exhibition games and two regular season games after an illegal hit (kneeing) on Chase De Leo of the Anaheim Ducks in a preseason game. He started off the season well, but in the second half, his play cratered and coach Todd McLellan began to scratch him from the lineup. After McLellan was fired, new coach Jim Hiller continued scratching him in favor of a seventh defenseman, with Kaliyev playing just six games after the March trade deadline and not at all in the Kings' postseason. He ended the season with seven goals and 15 points in 51 games.

During the 2024–25 preseason, on the second day of training camp on September 22, Kaliyev suffered a broken clavicle. He was out of the lineup for the remainder of training camp and the regular season until December. Upon his return from the injury, he was assigned to the AHL on a conditioning loan, joining the Reign on December 10. He appeared in five games for the Reign, scoring one goal and two points.

New York Rangers On January 6, 2025, Kaliyev was claimed off waivers by the New York Rangers. He made his Rangers debut on January 9 in a 3–2 overtime victory over the New Jersey Devils. He scored his first goal for the Rangers on January 16, in a 5–3 victory over the Utah Hockey Club. He played in 14 games for the Rangers before his season ended due to injury on March 11, recording three goals and four points. Kaliyev was a restricted free agent after the season, but the Rangers declined to make a qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent.

Ottawa Senators Kaliyev signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Ottawa Senators on July 2, 2025. He began the season with Ottawa's AHL affiliate, the Belleville Senators, after clearing waivers. He was recalled by Ottawa on October 16 to replace the injured Brady Tkachuk. He made his Senators' debut that night against the Seattle Kraken. He tallied his first point for Ottawa on October 18 in a 5–4 loss to the New York Islanders, assisting on David Perron's power play goal in the first period. He was returned to Belleville on October 20. He was selected to represent Belleville at the 2026 AHL All-Star Classic in February 2026. He spent the rest of the season with Belleville, tallying 40 goals and 68 points in 70 games.

International play

Kaliyev was selected to represent the United States' junior team at the 2020 World Junior Championships. He led the team in goal scoring with four and added two assists for six points in five games. He returned to the US junior team for the 2021 World Junior Championships. Kaliyev scored the game-winning goal to beat Finland for a spot in the final. He earned a gold medal with the United States' 2–0 victory over Canada in the final.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2017–18 Hamilton Bulldogs OHL 68 31 17 48 20 21 3 8 11 6 2018–19 Hamilton Bulldogs OHL 67 51 51 102 22 4 1 1 2 0 2019–20 Hamilton Bulldogs OHL 57 44 54 98 28 — — — — — 2020–21 Los Angeles Kings NHL 1 1 0 1 0 — — — — — 2020–21 Ontario Reign AHL 40 14 17 31 24 1 0 0 0 0 2021–22 Los Angeles Kings NHL 80 14 13 27 37 7 0 0 0 2 2022–23 Los Angeles Kings NHL 56 13 15 28 12 — — — — — 2023–24 Los Angeles Kings NHL 51 7 8 15 14 2 0 0 0 0 2024–25 Ontario Reign AHL 5 1 1 2 8 — — — — — 2024–25 New York Rangers NHL 14 3 1 4 2 — — — — — 2025–26 Belleville Senators AHL 70 40 28 68 30 — — — — — 2025–26 Ottawa Senators NHL 2 0 1 1 0 — — — — —NHL totals 204 38 38 76 65 9 0 0 0 2

International Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM 2018 United States HG18 5 3 3 6 0 2020 United States WJC 5 4 2 6 4 2021 United States WJC 7 3 5 8 4Junior totals 17 10 10 20 8