Team Finland comes into this year’s World Juniors Championship (WJC) tournament looking to improve upon their 4th-place finish in 2024. They will be led by Kasper Halttunen, who was loaned back to the London Knights of the OHL this past month by the San Jose Sharks after he opened the year up in the AHL with the Barracuda.
I’m projecting the Finns to return seven players from last year’s team with the hopes that this group can get them back to the semi-finals, which they have only missed once in the last six tournaments.
Forwards
Kasper Halttunen (LW/RW) | Konsta Helenius (C/RW) | Emil Hemming (RW) |
Julius Miettinen (C/W) | Topias Hynninen (C) | Roope Vesterinen (LW/RW) |
Jesse Nurmi (LW) | Tuomas Uronen (W/C) | |
Lauri Sinivuori (C/LW) | Heikki Ruohonen (C) | Jesse Kiiskinen (RW) |
Finland will likely come into this tournament with a fairly well-rounded forward group led by first-rounders Konsta Helenius and Emil Hemming, as well as San Jose second-rounder Kasper Halttunen. These three will most likely be the main offensive catalysts for the Finns, along with Julius Miettinen of the Everett Silvertips.
The rest of the offence will need to come by committee, in typical Finnish fashion, and I believe that any team coming up against the Finnish offence will need to be ready for a battle as they have a number of solid two-way players. I will also be very intrigued to watch where Heikki Ruohonen slides into the lineup, as he is a hard worker, and I could see him slide anywhere in the lineup.
It will be interesting to see who the Finns opt to take to Ottawa over Christmas, as I believe that the likes of Markus Loponen, Aatos Koivu, Joona Saarelainen & Emil Järventie could all be options on the offensive end for Finland. I feel that out of all the battles that will ensue during camp, the battle for the 13th forward will be the most interesting, as Rautiainen currently feels like the ideal 13th forward to take for the Finns. However, Saarelainen has been good internationally, so it would not be surprising if he were to make the roster.
Defense
Kalle Kangas (LHD) | Emil Pieniniemi (LHD) |
Aron Kiviharju (LHD) | Sebastian Soini (RHD) |
Veeti Väisänen (LHD) | Niilopekka Muhonen (LHD) |
Janne Peltonen (LHD) |
This year’s Finnish team will be returning two players from last year’s team – Kalle Kangas and Emil Pieniniemi – and welcome a plethora of 2024 NHL draft picks to the mix.
This will be a very mobile defensive group for the Finns this year who are capable of moving the puck up ice at will. They will be relied on heavily to provide the solid defensive game we’ve grown accustomed to seeing from the Finns in previous iterations of the WJC. I would also expect them to provide some help offensively, with Kiviharju, Kangas, and Pieniniemi most likely leading the charge.
Of all the players who could make this team on the back end, I believe Sebastian Soini will be the one to watch as the roster takes shape, as he was a surprise omission from the U18 team last spring. I expect that Team Finland will have a decision to make for the last spot on the blue line, as Daniel Nieminen has looked good to start the year with Lahti, while Janne Petonen can play both sides and gives Finland another player they can play on the right besides Soini. I could also see Mitja Jokinen as a potential dark horse; however, I think he’ll more likely be left at home this year.
Goaltenders
| In consideration: Noa Vali, Visa Vedenpää |
The goaltending battle for who will be the starter for Finland on opening night at the WJC will most likely be decided based on their performances during the pre-tournament games. It should be Eemil Vinni’s net to lose, as he is the guy most would pencil in as the Finns’ number one going into the tournament. However, Vinni has yet to play internationally this season for Finland and could be a surprise omission from this year’s team.
Petteri Rimpinen has most definitely earned himself a spot on this year’s team. He has looked exceptional so far this season for Kiekko-Espoo and would be the most likely candidate to take the starting job from Vinni out of any of Finland’s other potential goalies.
I feel that, for now, Finland’s third goaltender will most likely be Kim Saarinen. However, Noa Vali and Visa Vedenpää could also be options for this year’s team. Neither Vali nor Saarinen have been at all impressive in league play so far this season, and Vedenpää has only recently returned from injury.
Conclusion
It would be fairly safe to project Finland to finish, at worst, 4th again at this year’s tournament. With the strength of Canada, Sweden and the US, it will most likely come down to whether the Finns can pull off another Finnish-like run. They don’t have the firepower of the aforementioned teams, but they have the talent to hang with them if the games get tight, and if they get the goaltending that we know that Vinni and Rimpinen can provide. All things considered, Team Finland could have a very good chance at a medal in Ottawa.
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