Ahead of the New Jersey Devils' opening game of the 2025 Prospects Challenge in Buffalo, New York, Lenni Hameenaho was looking forward to getting the first game out of the way.
Put on the top line with Shane Lachance and Matyas Melovsky, the 20-year-old Finnish right wing was not a standout against the Columbus Blue Jackets, but that was to be expected.
Thursday night marked Hameenaho's first game in North America, and he needed to make some adjustments.
"If you compare to Europe, there are smaller rinks here," he told NJD.TV on Sept. 11.
Hameenaho needed to be aware that the game would be faster and he would have less space than he was accustomed to when playing overseas.
In the Devils' 8-2 win over the Blue Jackets, the young winger did not find his name on the scoresheet. It wouldn't be for another 24 hours that he would score his first goal in North America.
"Centering pass. Hameenaho in front. He scores," Devils play-by-play announcer Matt Loughlin excitedly shared. "He had been slowed down by the big defenseman for Buffalo, but as we have seen through his career in Europe, he finds a way to get back into a scoring position. He has tied the game at 1-1."
It began New Jersey's comeback efforts to their eventual 4-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres.
"I thought he was a driver for us tonight," Utica Comets head coach Ryan Parent told NJD.TV. "It was a really skilled team, a lot of good players on the other side, but I thought he was a driver, did a lot of things well."
The goal provided Hameenaho with a much-needed boost of confidence as he continues to get more comfortable playing in North America.
" It has been a little bit weird to play, but I think it's getting better all the time," Hameenaho told NJD.TV. "I am sure it will (continue to) be better every shift, shift by shift."
The Devils will wrap up the Prospects Challenge on Sunday, Sept. 14, at noon against the Boston Bruins.
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