Patrik Laine has collected the biggest headlines, but Oliver Kapanen has emerged as the biggest comet of the training season, writes Urheilu’s NHL editor Tommi Seppälä.
Tommi SeppäläYle’s NHL reporter
‘s NHL-ilta podcast is published today, Thursday at 12 noon. The NHL season starts on Friday, when the New Jersey Devils meet the Buffalo Sabers in Prague.
That level has prevailed in Montreal in recent weeks Patrick Laine – drug, that under it is buried the Finnish sensation humming in the background.
This sensation is being built primarily through the action of the ice level. KalPa excelled last season Oliver Kapanen21, is forcing himself into the NHL lineup.
It was hard to believe this beforehand, even though Montreal is not among the NHL elite.
The third-generation elite hockey player, who moves quickly in the rink and performs maturely, was known as a potential NHL player, but his excellent performances in the camp have raised expectations.
Kapanen has done exactly what a young player fighting for a spot should do: play in such a way that the coaching staff simply cannot drop him from the lineup.
A week before the start of the season, Kapanen is hanging on to a place in the playing lineup. The coaching management stated that they wanted to watch the card with the Finn until the end.
Kapanen has charmed the puck-crazed city with his maturity. Kapanen moves well and thus brings out his high skill level. A sharp game head is seen as a good placement. Even in the beginnings, Kapanen has been able to twist believably. The whole has been at a good level throughout the camp.
Could Kapanen even be beaten in the race for a place Christian Dvorak too or by Jake Evans?
Yes, it could.
“Eagle names” at risk
Kapase’s situation is still not that simple. The training season is completely different from the 82-game regular season, where the competition against the opponent’s top centers is extreme from night to night, especially for a center forward in the tough Eastern Conference.
Montreal needs to think carefully about how to maximize the development of their young player.
The club will definitely remember how it worked Jesperi Kotkaniemi with a few years ago.
At the time, the 18-year-old raakile was forcibly taken directly from the booking event to the playing lineup. Kotkaniemi was allowed to develop into the AHL only much later, when milk was already all over the tables and floors. The moped went into the ditch so that the bench got dusty. And it’s not the player’s fault.
There is no doubt that Kotkaniemi, who currently represents Carolina, has paid for the mistake made by Montreal in his career.
Kapanen does not want to repeat this mistake. On the other hand, Kapanen is already 21 years old, i.e. three years older than Kotkaniemi used to be. I would still dare to say that a better result will come from playing it safe – I’d rather have one extra year in Europe than by playing in the NHL.
Kapanen would hardly be able to play an intact 82-match regular season, and sitting in the stands does no one any good.
Artturi Lehkonen with Montreal worked better.
Lehkonen played two years in the Swedish premier league in Frölunda before moving to Montreal at the age of 21. The rest is history. Lehkonen was immediately ready when he arrived in the NHL and is currently a Stanley Cup winner.
Kapanen previously signed a contract Olli Jokinen with coach Timrå. For Kapanen, who played through the SM league, the SHL could be an excellent step into this seam. A year in Sweden in a leading role and after that a final breakthrough into the Montreal playing lineup.
In these times, the world of ice hockey is driven by haste and a lack of composure, but often the best results are achieved by calmly building.
Anton Lundell and Miro Heiskanen played in Finland for another year after the reservation and broke through in the NHL immediately. Many have been shoved into buck troughs in a hurry, which has made the road bumpy in the end.
Still, the possibility that Montreal wants Oliver Kapanen immediately cannot be ruled out. It is entirely possible that the return to Västernorrland, Northern Sweden, which seemed obvious in advance, will not happen. Olli Jokinen may end up getting along with Kapanen.
And if this happens, no one can say that Kapanen didn’t earn his playing spot with bucks.