Kristian Vesalainen

Kristian Vesalainen (born 1 June 1999) is a Finnish professional ice hockey forward HIFK of the Finnish Liiga. Vesalainen was drafted by the Winnipeg Jets in the first round, 24th overall, in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.

Kristian Vesalainen
Vesalainen with the Winnipeg Jets in 2022
Born (1999-06-01) 1 June 1999
Helsinki, Finland
Height 6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight 207 lb (94 kg; 14 st 11 lb)
Position Left wing
Shoots Left
Liiga team
Former teams		 HIFK
Frölunda HC
HPK
Oulun Kärpät
Winnipeg Jets
Jokerit
Malmö Redhawks
NHL Draft 24th overall, 2017
Winnipeg Jets
Playing career 2015–present

Playing career

Vesalainen originally played as a youth in his native Finland, appearing up to the Junior A level with HIFK before opting to continue his development in Sweden with Frölunda HC on 27 August 2015. Vesalainen made his professional debut at the senior level with Frölunda in the Swedish Hockey League during the 2015–16 season.[1] After an initial loan period to return to Finland during the 2016–17 season with HPK of the Liiga, Vesalainen made his move permanent in agreeing to a one-year deal with HPK on 28 April 2017.[2] In his first year of eligibility, Vesalainen was selected in the first round, 24th overall, by the Winnipeg Jets at the 2017 NHL Entry Draft on 23 June 2017.[3]

In the 2017–18 season, despite his age Vesalainen impressively secured a top line role with HPK. With the club out of playoff contention and while leading the HPK in scoring with 19 goals and 39 points, Vesalainen was loaned for the remainder of the season to league leaders Oulun Kärpät on 21 February 2018.[4] Kärpät would eventually win the Liiga championship, with Vesalainen scoring 8 points in 18 playoff games. On 26 August 2018, Vesalainen signed a three-year, $4.476 million entry-level contract with the Jets,[5] which included an out clause that would permit him to play in Europe during the 2018–19 season if he did not make the team's roster during the training camp.[6]

Vesalainen made his NHL debut on 4 October 2018 in a 5–1 win over the St. Louis Blues. He played 8:12 minutes of ice time and earned one assist.[7] On 22 November, the Jets assigned Vesalainen to Jokerit of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).[8][9]

On 21 October 2020, Vesalainen returned to HPK on loan from the Winnipeg Jets, until the commencement of the delayed North American 2020–21 season.[10] In the following 2021–22 season, Vesalainen scored his first NHL goal against the Nashville Predators on 23 October 2021.[11] He appeared in a career best 53 regular season games with the Jets, totalling just 3 points, before he was re-assigned to close out the season with the Manitoba Moose in the AHL.

As an impending restricted free agent with the Jets, Vesalainen chose to return to Europe by signing a one-year contract with Swedish club, Malmö Redhawks of the SHL, on 23 May 2022.[12] He opted to return to his home country in November that same year.[13]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2014–15 HIFK Jr. A 171120 10000
2015–16 Frölunda HC J20 371519340 10110
2015–16 Frölunda HC SHL 19 1 1 2 0 5 0 0 0 2
2016–17 Frölunda HC J20 1040414 52130
2016–17 Frölunda HC SHL 26 1 5 6 2 1 0 0 0 0
2016–17 HPK Liiga 9 1 0 1 0 — — — — —
2017–18 HPK Liiga 44 19 20 39 6 — — — — —
2017–18 Oulun Kärpät Liiga 5 3 1 4 0 18 4 4 8 14
2018–19 Winnipeg Jets NHL 5 0 1 1 0 — — — — —
2018–19 Manitoba Moose AHL 22 4 9 13 10 — — — — —
2018–19 Jokerit KHL 31 6 11 17 0 6 1 0 1 4
2019–20 Manitoba Moose AHL 60 12 18 30 10 — — — — —
2020–21 HPK Liiga 10 4 4 8 4 — — — — —
2020–21 Manitoba Moose AHL 6 1 4 5 0 — — — — —
2020–21 Winnipeg Jets NHL 12 0 1 1 0 4 0 0 0 0
2021–22 Winnipeg Jets NHL 53 2 1 3 6 — — — — —
2021–22 Manitoba Moose AHL 17 3 3 6 6 2 0 0 0 0
Liiga totals 6827255210 1844814
NHL totals 702356 40000

International
Medal record
Representing  Finland
Ice hockey
IIHF World U18 Championship
Gold medal – first place2016 United States
Silver medal – second place2017 Slovakia
Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2014 Finland U17 4th 6 3 2 5 4
2015 Finland IH18 4th 5 0 0 0 0
2015 Finland U17 5th 5 4 4 8 4
2016 Finland U18 1st place, gold medalist(s) 7 2 4 6 6
2017 Finland U18 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 7 6 7 13 8
2017 Finland WJC 9th 6 1 1 2 0
2018 Finland WJC 6th 5 2 4 6 2
Junior totals 41 18 22 40 24

References
  1. "Kristian Vesalainen player profile". Swedish Hockey League (in Swedish). 2 November 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
  2. "HPK announce nine new agreements". HPK (in Finnish). 28 April 2017. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  3. "Highly coveted Vesalainen drafted with 24th overall pick". Winnipeg Jets. 23 June 2017. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
  4. "HPK's Palve and Vesalainen continue their seasons elsewhere". HPK (in Finnish). 21 February 2018. Retrieved 21 February 2018.
  5. "Jets sign Kristian Vesalainen to three-year contract". NHL.com. 26 August 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  6. Wiebe, Ken (26 August 2018). "Vesalainen inks deal with Jets". Winnipeg Sun. Retrieved 28 August 2018.
  7. Korac, Louie (5 October 2018). "Jets, Hellebuyck handle Blues, Allen". NHL.com. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
  8. "Jets reassign Kristian Vesalainen from Manitoba to Jokerit". NHL.com. 22 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  9. Beneteau, Josh (22 November 2018). "Jets assign forward Kristian Vesalainen to Jokerit of KHL". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  10. "HPK enters into agreement with Kristian Vesalainen" (in Finnish). HPK. 21 October 2020. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  11. "Nashville Predators - Winnipeg Jets - October 23rd, 2021". NHL.com. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
  12. "Finnish NHL forward signs with Malmö Redhawks" (in Swedish). Malmö Redhawks. 23 May 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  13. "Kristian Vesalainen lämnar Malmö • åker hem till Finland". Expressen. 8 November 2022. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
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