Rodion Amirov was posthumously honored by his Kontinental Hockey League club on Monday.
HC Salavat Yulaev held a jersey retirement ceremony for their former player before their game against Metallurg Magnitogorsk where they raised a banner featuring Amirov's name and his No. 27 jersey number.
On August 14, Amriov's agent, Dan Milstein, revealed that the Toronto Maple Leafs' draft pick passed away after a nearly two-year battle with cancer.
In the days that followed, Milstein confirmed to The Hockey News that HC Salavat intended to retire Amirov's No. 27 jersey in a ceremony in addition to other tributes for their deceased teammate.
The Maple Leafs drafted the Russian forward with their first pick (15th overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft. On February 23, 2022, then-general manager Kyle Dubas released a statement revealing that Amirov had been diagnosed with a brain tumor.
The NHL club helped Amirov and his family with medical expenses and treatments for his cancer in both Germany and Russia. In the fall of 2022, the Maple Leafs brought Amirov over to Toronto and he took part in some training camp activities. On October 13, 2022, Amirov was introduced to the crowd at Scotiabank Arena as part of the team's opening-night roster in a symbolic gesture.
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