Teemu Pulkkinen leaves KHL, heads to Germany
© Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports - Teemu Pulkkinen leaves KHL, heads to GermanyFinnish right winger Teemu Pulkkinen, 32, has signed a one-year contract with the Schwenninger Wild Wings, the DEL club announced on Wednesday.
Pulkkinen, 32, played in North America from 2013 to 2018, splitting time between the NHL and AHL, and then played in the KHL from 2018 to 2024.
“First of all, I would like to thank the club for the opportunity to play in the DEL, because I have heard a lot of good things about hockey in Germany,” said Pulkkinen. “I am really excited and very happy to be able to play for the Wild Wings. Everything I have found out about the location has been really great. Now it is up to me to give something back from this trust in me and to support the team as best as possible.”
Pulkkinen initially turned pro with Helsinki-based Jokerit, recording 135 points in 198 Liiga games before heading overseas at the age of 21.
A fourth-round draft pick of the Detroit Red Wings in 2010, Pulkkinen joined the club three years later at the tail end of the 2012-13 AHL season. He then spent the next three seasons in the Detroit organization before moving on to the Minnesota Wild and finally the Vegas Golden Knights, with whom he only played pre-season games. All told, Pulkkinen played 83 NHL games, scoring 13 goals and recording nine assists and 32 penalty minutes.
In six KHL seasons, Pulkkinen had 185 points in 319 games with Dinamo Minsk, Dynamo Moscow, Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, Traktor Chelyabinsk and Kunlun Red Star.
Internationally, Pulkkinen represented Finland at two IIHF U18 World Championships and two World Juniors. At the 2010 U18 Worlds, he led the tournament with 15 points in six games and was named best forward. At his only senior-level World Championship in 2016, Pulkkinen took home a silver medal.
Aside from Pulkkinen, other recognizable names on the Wild Wings roster include Swedish goaltender Joakim Ericsson, Canadian wingers Matt Puempel and Zach Senyshen, Norwegian forward Ken Andre Olimb, German defenseman Daryl Boyle and Italian defensemen Thomas Larkin and Alex Trivellato.
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