WC: Team Finland 2022 roster talk

[Elias40]

So where will Manninen and Hartikainen play next season. These guys are rather expensive salary wise. If they would play in any European league, they would have to take massive salary cuts.

Both of them are too good for anything else except the NHL, but for Hartikainen the skating speed might be an issue. Hartikainen has everything else needed though. Hartikainen said in an interview during this WHC tournament that with his age this would be the last moment to go back to NHL.

Manninen belongs to the NHL and we've seen smaller guys succeed there before so I could see it happening. Manninen is tougher than his size suggests. I've noticed him tackling guys hard and so on, but that's not what his primary focus should be though.

Which NHL teams are in need for a top-6 center that would be cheap in cost in NHL standards? Imagine Panthers and they would have only Finnish centers playing lmao. So I don't think that's the destination, but the thought of it is funny.

x-Barkov-x
x-Manninen-x
x-Lundell-x
x-Luostarinen-x

Hartikainen is a very strange player. When one sees him on the ice, he has the impression that with his skating he has no chance against better players. But this is a brutal mistake, because what he loses in skating is replaced by hockey IQ. Incredibly smart player, knows when to pass or when to hold the puck and wait for a better teammate position. Although it looks harmless and lazy, it is the biggest threat. I'd say bigger than Granlund.

In the semifinals, I wrote how well he solved the situation on the blue line and actually prepared a goal for Manninen, an excellent demonstration of his hockey IQ.

 

[Mestaruus]

Hartikainen is a very strange player. When one sees him on the ice, he has the impression that with his skating he has no chance against better players. But this is a brutal mistake, because what he loses in skating is replaced by hockey IQ. Incredibly smart player, knows when to pass or when to hold the puck and wait for a better teammate position. Although it looks harmless and lazy, it is the biggest threat. I'd say bigger than Granlund.

In the semifinals, I wrote how well he solved the situation on the blue line and actually prepared a goal for Manninen, an excellent demonstration of his hockey IQ.

Indeed. He protects the puck like Jaromir Jagr. Some low end NHL team should just take them both. On NHL standards their 1 million or bit above salaries would be basically free. I don't see them accepting any two way contracts though. It would have to be one way contracts for both. If NHL wouldn't work out for them, then they could leave and go to Switzerland in the middle of the season.

 

[Mestaruus]

2023 WHC is bit too early to think about but I want to think about it a little bit anyways. We have so many winners and multiple WHC gold winners and Olympic winners, so it's pretty clear which names will rejoin Jalonen's 2023 WHC team. I removed the star caliber reinforcements from this line up that joined our team after NHL playoff round 1 (Granny, Heiskanen, Lindell). This is what I came up with as the European base of the roster. I am hoping that we get luckier with greater amount of NHL players that "will help us win" to quote Jalonen:

X-X-X
Armia-Manninen-Hartikainen
Pesonen-Filppula-Sallinen
Mäenalanen-Björninen-Anttila

Lehtonen-Seppälä
Jokiharju-X
Vatanen-Friman
Ohtamaa-Pokka

I'll leave Rajala as an extra. He had a good tournament, but his spot is not as secured in the way those other forwards have it.

If we would get an overload of high level NHL defenders, then Pokka's spot could be in jeopardy. Next one is Friman and then Seppälä. Vatanen, Lehtonen and Ohtamaa are very much locked.

All of those forwards are so close to being locked already. They just have to be close to same level as as they were this season with their clubs and regardless of that, they will obviously get their chance to showcase it in EHT & WHC camp if they are healthy and available.

My feeling is that Armia returns to the team as Montreal is still rebuilding their team, hence they are not going to make the playoffs.

Buffalo continues the trend of not making the playoffs despite of their roster eventually getting better via drafts and while their roster is gaining more experience. 2019 WHC champion Jokiharju joins.

It's interesting to see what happens with contractless Lammikko. I thought that he looked good as a #4 center last season and I think that he will stay in the NHL with high amount of games played next season. He's RFA so it seems like he will most likely stay with Vancouver. They weren't far this season from making the playoffs so I'm not sure will we get Lammikko.

It is very possible that Manninen will be in the NHL next season so we'll see what happens with that. It would be a huge loss for the team if he ends up in the wrong team or those 82 games in a very physical league would get him injured. Seppälä and Hartikainen have some kind of possibility to give it a go in the NHL as well.

I won't speculate further as it's too early, but I'll say this as a final thing. The Tampere based NHL players continue to have very high interest towards WHC 2023. It's very possible that Laine could be in the team assuming that he signs another contract with Columbus. Columbus' destiny could very well be missing the playoffs once again.

 

[SantosHalper]

2023 WHC is bit too early to think about but I want to think about it a little bit anyways. We have so many winners and multiple WHC gold winners and Olympic winners

And that's why the team core rebuild is not out of the question, this year's team already was the oldest team in the tournament. Make Björninen a captain and keep few other core players like Innala, Seppälä, Friman.

Fill the rest of the spots with potential NHL helps and new core players from Europe and if there's not enough good new core players, then select couple players from the old core.

"Kun Aika On" - The time might be for a rebuild. What goes up must come down.

 

[Mestaruus]

And that's why the team core rebuild is not out of the question, this year's team already was the oldest team in the tournament. Make Björninen a captain and keep few other core players like Innala, Seppälä, Friman.

Fill the rest of the spots with potential NHL helps and new core players from Europe and if there's not enough good new core players, then select couple players from the old core.

"Kun Aika On" - The time might be for a rebuild. What goes up must come down.

What does it matter if it's the oldest team if that's what brings the championships?

I'm not sure was it Ismo Lehkonen who talked about some kind of rebuild. It was also him or some other of these YLE/MTV3 guys that said that it's very possible that we will go one more year with this core because it's a back to back home tournament. I agree with this. I think that we will go one more tournament with a team that has old age average. Of course if some players decide individually that they are done, then that's their decision and there's nothing we can do about it.

Hietanen said that he's done. That sounded very final to me.

Filppula said that he isn't sure yet, but I got a feeling that he will do one more tournament if it's Jukka Jalonen as the head coach & home tournament again.

Vatanen isn't too old yet.

Guys like Pesonen and Sallinen are Jalonen's soldiers and they won't decline an invite.

Ohtamaa I'm not sure about because he has played in so many WHC tournaments compared to many of the other players, but I think that he will do at least one more tournament if Jalonen asks him.

I just don't see Anttila quitting yet. I also think that our goalies, Olkinuora and Säteri will have interest in playing more under Jalonen's leadership.

 

[SantosHalper]

What does it matter if it's the oldest team if that's what brings the championships?

Hunger to win? Motivation? Family situations? Gas in the tank? Age doesn't really matter, but the age+success might matter.

I'm not sure was it Ismo Lehkonen who talked about some kind of rebuild. It was also him or some other of these YLE/MTV3 guys that said that it's very possible that we will go one more year with this core because it's a back to back home tournament. I agree with this.

Well that's not a bad plan. "Yritetään kerran vielä pojat"-project for next year and then year after that Jalonen drives in the new core.

Current core players aren't gone and if Jalonen invites them, nobody is not declining. But if Jalonen decides to bring in a new core, the old core doesn't have much saying in that. Like Lepistö, who's been waiting for invitation but hasn't recieved it.

 

[Mestaruus]

Hunger to win? Motivation? Family situations? Gas in the tank? Age doesn't really matter, but the age+success might matter.

Well that's not a bad plan. "Yritetään kerran vielä pojat"-project for next year and then year after that Jalonen drives in the new core.

Current core players aren't gone and if Jalonen invites them, nobody is not declining. But if Jalonen decides to bring in a new core, the old core doesn't have much saying in that. Like Lepistö, who's been waiting for invitation but hasn't recieved it.

I just see a repeat with same core if most of them are healthy and available, excluding Hietanen while hoping for greater amount of strong NHL helpers. I would love that plan. Things would change though if Jalonen suddenly would leave the national team for NHL. We would still have many players from that core but lower amount of them. Maybe even 50% less.

The good part with very experienced team in a home tournament is that they can deal with the pressure better, especially when they have already experienced winning in a home tournament. About the hunger to win and motivation. Well who knows really what each of the players think but my guess is that they will still be hungry enough. Let the old folks play as long as they keep up the playing in the finals streak on and if they still want to play for the national team.

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

35 Frans Tuohimaa
30 Niclas Westerholm

1:
15 Miro Aaltonen – 65 Sakari Manninen (A) – 21 Jere Innala
4 Mikko Lehtonen – 7 Oliwer Kaski

2:
25 Toni Rajala – 22 Ville Petman – 20 Niko Ojamäki
3 Niklas Friman – 18 Vili Saarijärvi

3:
82 Harri Pesonen – 76 Jere Sallinen – 52 Petrus Palmu
81 Kalle Maalahti – 38 Juuso Hietanen

4:
37 Eemil Erholtz – 80 Saku Mäenalanen – 12 Marko Anttila (C)
55 Atte Ohtamaa (A) – 41 Arttu Pelli

Trying out new guys with Manninen

Curious about Erholtz. Obviously, Assat wasn't very good but big jump in points, only 22-years-old and skating with national team.

Is there more to see in his game?

 

[AKQJ]

President Niinistö met Olympic and World Championship heroes today. Coach Jalonen got another award! Respect!

 

[AKQJ]

Nice photo from today. Olympic and World Championship heroes with The President of Finland. Hockey means everything in Finland. I remember the saying about football and Italy. Hockey version could be that when everywhere hockey is part of life, then in Finland life is part of hockey. I know all our Canadian friends come here to... I believe them too! But that does not change the fact, that that's the way it is in Finland!

 

[Mestaruus]

I'm feeling that Finland, Canada and Sweden are the top favorites next year. Czech will be a dark horse team, because we don't know yet what Kari Jalonen is capable of with the Czech team when he has a full season with the Czech team and finding the right non NHLer pieces via EHT and by just observing games.

Next year's home tournament should finally be on small ice. Russia invading Ukraine apparently changed that small ice plan for the 2022 WHC tournament, because of former Hartwall Arena (Russian ownership) being switched to HIFK's arena and HIFK apparently didn't have enough time to react to that change.

Small ice in 2023 WHC would most likely mean that the significance of NHL helpers will become more important next year, so we better be luckier in 2023 in getting NHL reinforcements than this year. We should certainly see a stronger team Canada and team USA. Sweden tends to have more NHL players than most countries as well and their new coach could be good. So I'd bet my money on one of Canada, Sweden or Finland winning the tournament.