Ilya Mikheyev

Ilya Andreyevich Mikheyev (Илья Андреевич Михеев) (born 10 October 1994), nicknamed "Soup" or "Souperman", is a Russian professional ice hockey forward for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Playing career
Mikheyev started his career in the school of Avangard Omsk. In 2012 he started playing in the youth team Omskie Yastreby in the MHL. In 2013 he won the Kharlamov Cup with his team. In the 2013–14 season he started playing for Yermak Angarsk, the farm team of Avangard in the VHL. in the next seasons he also played for Sokol Krasnoyarsk and Saryarka Karagandy, that time farm teams of Avangard, in the VHL. In the 2015–16 season he started playing for Avangard in the Kontinental Hockey League. He established quickly in the team. The 2017–18 season he finished as the top scorer of Avangard with 38 points.

In 62 games during the 2018–19 season, Mikheyev recorded 23 goals and 22 assists for 45 points to again finish as the club's top point scorer. In the post-season he helped Avangard reach the Gagarin Cup finals recording 11 points in 13 games.

On 6 May 2019, Mikheyev signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL). On 2 October 2019, during the Maple Leafs' home opener, Mikheyev scored his first NHL goal and added an assist in a 5–3 victory over the Ottawa Senators. After his debut, he made a passing comment about how he loved soup, which eventually led to a partnership with the Campbell Soup Company. In a game against the New Jersey Devils on 27 December, Devils forward Jesper Bratt fell, causing his skate blade to cut Mikheyev's wrist. Mikheyev suffered a laceration on his wrist and was removed from the game. He immediately underwent surgery to repair an artery and tendons in his wrist.

International play
In 2017, Mikheyev played for Team Russia at the 2017 Deutschland Cup. He was later added to make his full international debut for Russia at the 2018 World Championships in Denmark.