Oliver Kapanen On Finland's Roster For Swiss Hockey Games

Following the team’s home-ice victory in the first leg of the 2024-25 Euro Hockey Tour in November, Finland announced its roster for the second leg – the Swiss Hockey Games – which will be played Dec. 12 to 15, mostly in Fribourg, Switzerland but the Finns will open the tournament with a game against Czechia in Pradubice.

The 24-man roster only includes 10 returnees from the team that won three straight games over Switzerland, Czechia and Finland in Helsinki last month, notably 24-year-old NHL prospects Lassi Thomson (Ottawa Senators), Peetro Seppälä (Seattle Kraken) and Sampo Ranta (Colorado Avalanche). It also includes ex-NHLers Harri Pesonen – who led the Karjala Cup with six points – and Waltteri Merelä.

Notable players not returning are captain Mikko Lehtonen, Winnipeg Jets prospect Kristian Veselainen and goalie Harri Säteri – the latter being replaced on the roster by Christian Heljanko. Another new selection is 21-year-old Timrå IK center Oliver Kapanen, who was loaned from the Montreal Canadiens a couple weeks ago.

Interestingly, the squad includes no players from Finland’s domestic Liiga. Overall, 17 players were chosen from the Swedish Hockey League and seven from Switzerland’s National League.

It’s a busy week for the Finnish Ice Hockey Association. In addition to this roster, Finland’s team for the 4 Nations Face-Off, which will also be coached by Antti Pennanen, will be announced on Wednesday.

Goaltenders:
Heljanko Christian, Linköping HC
Larmi Emil, Växjö Lakers HC

Defensemen:
Kinnunen Santtu, ZSC Lions
Riikola Juuso, SCL Tigers
Rissanen Rasmus, Linköping HC
Thomson Lassi, Malmö Redhawks (Ottawa Senators)
Saarijärvi Vili, SCL Tigers
Salo Robin, Malmö Redhawks
Seppälä Peetro, Örebro HK (Seattle Kraken)
Winberg Tobias, MoDo Hockey

Forwards:
Borgström Henrik, HV71 (Washington Capitals)
Haapala Henrik, Malmö Redhawks
Ikonen Joona, Malmö Redhawks
Kapanen Oliver, Timrå IK (Montreal Canadiens)
Kossila Kalle, Örebro HK
Leino Robert, Örebro HK
Merelä Waltteri, SC Bern (Tampa Bay Lightning)
Nurmi Markus, Luleå HF
Pajuniemi Lauri, Lausanne HC
Pesonen Harri, SCL Tigers
Puistola Patrik, Örebro HK
Ranta Sampo, MoDo Hockey (Colorado Avalanche)
Ruotsalainen Arttu, Frölunda HC (Buffalo Sabres)