Mikko Rantanen Delivers Rolex To Jack Roslovic Thanks To Finnish Support

In exchange for his preferred number, Mikko Rantanen made a deal with Jack Roslovic, but the Finn needed some outside help to make it happen.

When the Carolina Hurricanes acquired Finnish foward Mikko Rantanen in a blockbuster trade back in January, they knew they were getting a proven star.

One of the NHL's elite scoring talents who helped lead the Colorado Avalanche to a Stanley Cup in 2022.

He was everything that the Canes needed and when the trade call went through on the night of Jan. 24, a multi-month endeavor was completely squared away.

Well, almost completely squared away.

The only problem was that Rantanen had only ever worn the number 96 in the NHL and at the time of the trade, Jack Roslovic was already wearing it.

But the two quickly worked out a solution with the American handing over the number to the new Finn in exchange for a watch, a common deal seen throughout the league.

When Rantanen first met the team in New York, Roslovic could be heard chirping him in a video that the team put out, saying, 'You got my watch ready?'

But Rantanen did in fact not yet have the watch.

For one, the Finnish winger had just been traded less than 24 hours earlier and two, the watch that Roslovic was after — a Rolex Datejust 41 — just wasn't available anywhere without a multi-year waiting period.

But luckily for Rantanen, a fellow countryman came to his aid.

As soon as he heard about the trade and subsequent number swap, Joonas Salmela knew he had to get in contact with Rantanen.

"We had donated to Rantanen's junior academy activities in previous years, so it was relatively easy to establish contact," Salmela, a self-proclaimed watch enthusiast, told The Hockey News. "The watch model that Rantanen and Roslovic wanted is very sought after and challenging to obtain in the regular market, but we happened to have one available."

Once in contact with Rantanen, the newest Carolina Hurricane quickly arranged for the delivery of the watch and offered Salmela the chance to come all the way down to Raleigh to hand deliver it himself.

As fate would have it, the game that they got to attend — a Saturday afternoon showdown against the Utah Hockey Club — also happened to be Roslovic's 500th game too, a contest in which the American even scored his 19th goal of the season.

Quite a fitting time for a new Rolex.

But the surprises didn't stop there.

Not only did Roslovic get his Rolex that day, but both he and Rantanen received custom 925-silver chains from Salmela for each of them too.

Each chain was handmade by Robert Tarkkanen, a third generation, and Finland's youngest, master goldsmith.

As a sign of appreciation, Rantanen signed all the jerseys they had in the pro shop at Lenovo Center, gifting them as souvenirs for Salmela to take back to Finland.

“Both Jack and Mikko loved the necklaces, and we, in turn, had an unforgettable experience with the NHL and Carolina," Salmela said. "Thanks to Mikko for organizing and hosting us—this trip will never be forgotten."

The story was contributed to by Valtteri Karjula [IG/X: @valtterikarjula], Joonas Salmela [IG: IG: @jonegonzales] and Roope Koskinen.

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