The Montreal Canadiens have signed 20-year-old goal-scoring Finnish center Oliver Kapanen has signed a three-year, entry level contract, the NHL club announced on Saturday.
Montreal drafted Kapanen in the second round, 64th overall, in 2021. Since then, he has developed in leaps and bounds. In the past two seasons with KalPa in the Finnish Liiga, he has posted 27- and 34-point seasons. In the playoffs this year, Kapanen recorded seven goals and 14 points in 15 games.
While this year’s IIHF World Championship was largely a disappointment for Finland, Kapanen was a bright spot in his debut, leading the team in both goals and points with six.
Kapanen is a little different than a traditional center in that he’s more of a goal-scorer than a playmaker, and often gets his goals by moving his 6-foot-1, 183-pound frame into the dirty areas.
During the Worlds, he said of his goal-scoring strategy, “I’m just going to the net and trying to get some tips and lucky bounces. That’s all it is. I’m just trying to have that mentality that if I drive to the net, the goals will come.”
Until now, save for a couple of short-term loans, Kapanen has played his entire career in the KalPa organization that his family has made famous. Father Kimmo, uncle Sami, cousins Kasperi and Konsta, grandfather Hannu and great-uncle Jari have all played for the club, with many also holding prominent coaching or management roles at various times.
That will change in 2024-25, however, as Kapanen committed at the end of the season to going to Timrå IK of the SHL.
“Going to Sweden is the next step in my career and I’ll try to take that path to the NHL,” he said in May.
In a tweet, Timrå clarified the status of Kapanen's contract, stating, “Oliver will remain in Timrå for training and pre-season before the NHL camp starts on September 18. If he does not take a place in the NHL, there is a clause to return to Timrå.”
That means, apparently, that Laval is not an option for Kapanen in the 2024-25 season. It's either Montreal or Timrå.