Kaapo Kakko, who was traded to Seattle, lands directly in the aura of the team’s second Finnish winger Eeli Tolvanen, writes Urheilu’s NHL reporter Tommi Seppälä.
Tommi Seppälä NHL reporter
In Seattle, at least an interesting competition between two young Finnish forwards will start.
Traded from the New York Rangers to Seattle the night before Thursday Kaapo Kako23, is going to fight for the same playing spot with a 25-year-old Eeli Tolvanen with.
The two know each other well, after all, they won the World Championship gold together for the young Lions in Vancouver in the winter of 2019. Tolvanen and Kakko skated until the final match in the same chain, together with the team currently representing Florida by Anton Lundell with.
Despite the beautiful World Cup memories together, trading Kako to Seattle was hardly the first thing on Tolvanen’s Christmas gift list.
Kakko is, like Tolvanen, a right winger who plays with his left hand down. Like Tolvanen, Kakko has also mainly played in a triple chain in the role of some sort of general player. The competition for a place to play and ice time among the Finns will be mercilessly fierce.
Let’s plan for the role of the solver
It may be that Kaapo Kakko is doing Tolvane a favor.
Utah acquired earlier in the fall Olli Määtä Another Finnish defender from Detroit Juuso Välimäki in front of. Määtta has since played in the team’s first pair of defenders, Välimäki in a clearly smaller role.
Kakko, who has struggled with his development in Rangers for several years, will come to Seattle to do exactly what Tolvane has also tried to do in the club. We are talking about high-quality two-way play with the responsibility of producing results. How Tolvanen has been successful in terms of making results is a matter for his own discussion.
At times better, at times it has been quieter. Eight hits in 33 games is not bad, but not a particularly good performance either.
It is certain that Kakko will be designed specifically for the role of the solver in Emerald City. It’s unlikely that even Seattle sees Kakko as a 100-point player, but the man from Turku certainly has more decisive power in the offensive area than what he got out of this in New York.
Kraken really needs more power from Kako, because the current team is profiled as mediocre in terms of scoring.
Different starting points
In Seattle, Kakko will get the responsibility of the top chain with all the power plays. In Rangers, the TPS student got opportunities, but did not manage to rise to the front row in the middle of the star cult. Now there is no star cult around, and there is no New York media or fan manacle either, so the starting points are completely different.
In this environment, Kakko is not only seen as a support player. Seattle signed Kako for the front line.
What does the acquisition of Kako mean for Eeli Tolvane?
It hardly improves Tolvanen’s position at least. Laituri’s average playing time has dropped by two minutes since last year, to around thirteen and a half minutes. Tolvanen didn’t start the season in the dominant formations, but has been able to play it in varying ways.
As long as Kakko arrives and returns from the injured list first Yanni Gourde and later in the winter Jordan EberleTolvanen’s Ice Age and especially force majeure liability may be on the cards. Of course, Tolvanen has developed comprehensively and is able to play the role of the fourth chain credibly if necessary.
A salary of 3.5 million without liability for force majeure is a lot for a ten-minute player.
On the other hand, everything mentioned above is pure speculation for now. On Kako’s side, there is a bigger potential of the attacking end and scoring side, age and a smaller booking number. Kakko was booked second in the first round, Tolvanen last.
The second will get a decent chance. It may at least initially take away oxygen from Tolvase, but ultimately the screens will decide. Both of the two know how to play believable two-way hockey and, if necessary, also solve problems.
Screen on, Urheilu’s hockey expert would say Ismo Lehkonen.