There have been no conversations around Rasmus Ristolainen, and more water was added to the mill on Thursday when a Turku resident signed a long extension agreement with Philadelphia. The player himself does not care about the opinions of stakeholders.
The follow-up agreement was not what the NHL community did Rasmus Ristolainen and the Philadelphia Flyers spring awaited. The team that played the closed season will be disbanded during and after the season, and Ristolainen, who is playing the final year of his contract, is not expected to be part of the future plans of the rejuvenating club.
Ristolainen’s name ran through the rumors.
What else. The TPS breeder signed a new five-year, $ 25.5 million extension paper with Philadelphia. According to preliminary plans, the new contract will keep the 27-year-old Turku fraternal love in the city at least until the summer of 2027.
Ristolainen says the decision was easy because both parties wanted the same.
– I’ve had a great time with this, so the decision was easy. There is a good team spirit and a great organization here. In addition, all the traditions of the club with their logos and jerseys make me light up, Ristolainen glows to Urheil.
Even a probable reconstruction project does not worry Risto. Ristolainen has never played in the playoffs in his eight-year NHL career. At least the odds aren’t going to improve if the team clears their workshop as expected.
– I think that despite the difficult season, we have better years ahead. There will definitely be changes to the team here and then in the summer let’s see what kind of team we have together. Despite possible changes, we still have good pieces to build around.
At least Ristolainen doesn’t have to think about the March 21 transfer deadline.
– Surely this was a small relief in terms of it, now that I know a little bit about the future. On the other hand, I have not been terribly bothered by those transfer rumors so far.
“Not interested at all”
Few Finnish players share opinions as strongly as Ristolainen. The new agreement has been criticized in many places as too expensive and risky from the club’s point of view. Ristolainen’s grip has fluctuated over the years, but at least the situation has not been alleviated by the representation of the culturally rotten Buffalo for eight seasons.
When Ristolainen moved to Philadelphia, there was a similar alley in front as in the chicken wing village.
Ristolainen has by no means been the biggest problem of the Flyers pakistani this season, but the general consensus is very critical of Ristainen. Imaginations of a player who is in the red in power statistics during each of their NHL seasons are built largely through statistics, especially advanced statistics.
Many often remember mentioning that Ristolainen has the weakest NHL power reading in the previous nine seasons, -174. And by almost fifty minus differences to the next.
Although Ristolainen, known for his intense physical presence, brings a lot of things to the table that many coaches like, the defender sucks at criticism like fly-paper insects – sometimes on the subject, sometimes for no reason.
The player is aware of the situation but refers to it on the glove.
– I do not follow the general debate terribly, but I do not avoid it either. I’ve heard stuff, but they don’t interest me at all. I will continue to play in my own way and with strong self-confidence. People can talk about what they want, Ristolainen says.
Ristolainen himself does not care about statistics, especially advanced ones.
– I’m such an old school dude that I’m only interested in victories and pennants on the roof. So far, there are quite a few. Towards them.
In the bottom mud once again
Ristolainen has reacted coldly to the mischief of the current season, although after eight sys-black Buffalo seasons, jumping into a similar mangel in a new environment could be imagined to strain a feverishly thirsty defender.
– I really liked being here and now we have a new team and a new environment. This does not feel the same as before and this is not really comparable to the years in Buffalo. The idea is that this season has now gone this way, but there is no such drift again.
How Philadelphia has drifted into total chaos and become the fifth weakest team in the entire league seems to be a bit of a mystery to Ristola himself. Flyers, for example, have already lost ten matches in the tube twice this season.
On Finland’s Independence Day, the club gave its shoes to the head coach To Alain Vigneault and hired an assistant coach to replace him Mike Yeon.
– There came a period of a couple of weeks or months during the old coach’s time when we played really poorly and didn’t even deserve to win those games. With the change of coach, there was quite a bit of confusion. Now we have played better, but this has been a rather weak season, Ristolainen opens.
– Of course, injuries don’t help either, especially when they hit key players, but everyone has injuries. It is difficult to say one thing why we are in this situation. I believe and hope that this is now a single landing here.
Home races are of interest
Especially now that Ristolainen’s contract matters are in order, the issue of the national team cannot be ignored in his case. The coaching team between Ristolainen and Leijonie has been in turmoil for a long time, because Ristolainen has repeatedly refused to be invited to the World Cup, as a result of which the coaching staff did not invite Ristolainen to the first Olympic event of the summer in Vanajanlinna.
Ristolainen met the head coach of the national team Jukka Jalosen as well as GM Jere Lehtisen earlier in the fall when these were meeting players for the Beijing Olympics. The trio sat down and cleared out the old grudges.
Ristolainen is now talking about the Tampere home competition with a promising note.
– When you think that there will be home races this year, it doesn’t sound bad at all. I have no obstacle as to why I could come, so let’s see now. But I haven’t thought about it any more, now let’s play the games out here first, Ristolainen decides.