Zarubin has emerged as Calgary’s top goaltending prospect and has quietly put together one of the stronger development seasons of any Flames prospect this year. A .933 save percentage and 2.03 GAA across 37 games as the clear starter for AKM Tula – having taken over the number one role outright – is encouraging production heading into his final MHL season by age eligibility. He has also made his first VHL appearance, which is the natural next step. At 6-4, he has the frame Calgary’s goaltending scouts clearly covet, and two consecutive strong MHL seasons give him a foundation to build on at the professional level. The path to North America is not imminent – the VHL situation next year will tell you a great deal more about his timeline. A significant investment in Russian goaltending prospects, looks to be well on it’s way to paying off for the Calgary Flames. A long-range dynasty stash with a realistic NHL timeline of four to five seasons if development continues on its current track.

Two solid seasons as a 1B in the MHL putting up a .945 SV% and .933 SV% gives reason to believe Zarubin will be seeing his first taste of the KHL in 2025-26. With that said, his counterpart, Ilya Kanarsky, put up similar numbers in the same workload (.931 SV% and .938% SV% respectively). Zarubin is one year younger so he has the edge in this comparison, however until both get a shot at the KHL level it’s hard to gauge if they’ll see time overseas in the AHL any time soon. Zarubin for his part was drafted four rounds earlier in his draft year, so the Flames goaltending scouts seem to like what they see so far.

Zarubin signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Calgary Flames in May 2025. His contract with carries a $1.00M cap hit and runs through the 2028-29 season.

Drafted by the Calgary Flames in the third round (84th overall) in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft.