Prospect Info: Kasper Pikkarainen (RW - #85 Overall - Round 3 - 2024 Draft)

Captain3rdLine

Registered User
Sep 24, 2020
7,812
9,060
He played five games in the men's league so you'd think a CHL stint would be a bit of a downgrade for him if he could play a full season in the men's league in Finland.
Playing in the CHL may give him more of an opportunity to grow his offensive game and skills rather than just mostly holding his own and keeping up in a men’s league.
 

Guadana

Registered User
Mar 7, 2012
8,684
23,344
St Petersburg
How many cracks did teams have at Shuravin and pass on him? For some reason he went fairly late for a guy who checks all the boxes. Something was off there.
Michkov was only 7th, Demidov was only 5th, chernyshov dropped into the second round, there were tonns of late rounders who will have better career or already have it with pro experience in front of early rounders who will never play nhl, or even prove themselves on the pro level. Some gms are ready to draft some players, some don't. The one who win is the one who is drafting better players with higher ceiling no matter they are coming from.

From tapes of Traff and Pikkarainen I think Fitz missed. And if we take trades into account - missed many times. Its not about Shuravin. Kos, Wetsch, Moiseevich, He, Marques. Thats I remember and watched, We can ask Steve and Evan about their better candidates.
And I don't wanna repeat myself with Kol and Krutov wuth picks in later rounds but I can't. Especially when rivalry team from our division is doing it.

Right winger for a team with tonns of right wingers, I don't understand why he can be better than Lenny. Lenny is very smart and creative in decision making, Pikka 2.0 is very inconsistent.

Its a stupid feeling that I like Devils last pick more than any pick outside first two rounds. Like it was in 2021 and 2023. Now it is about three drafts in four years. And still Melovsky wouldn't be my favorite decision for his pick.

I wish Pikkarainen all the best. As a trade asset potential... When I think about third round pick - its a good asset - you can trade 2nd and 3rd for really good NHLer. Pikkarainen should work really hard to be at least worth this 3rd round pick level asset.

I don't like the pick. But if course I will root for him and I hope he will learn the game on the fly.
 
Last edited:

Jersey Fresh

Video Et Taceo
Feb 23, 2004
27,185
10,359
T.A.
Michkov was only 7th, Demidov was only 5th, chernyshov dropped into the second round, there were tonns of late rounders who will have better career or already have it with pro experience in front of early rounders who will never play nhl, or even prove themselves on the pro level. Some gms are ready to draft some players, some don't. The one who win is the one who is drafting better players with higher ceiling no matter they are coming from.

From tapes of Traff and Pikkarainen I think Fitz missed. And if we take trades into account - missed many times. Its not about Shuravin. Kos, Wetsch, Moiseevich, He, Marques. Thats I remember and watched, We can ask Steve and Evan about their better candidates.
And I don't wanna repeat myself with Kol and Krutov wuth picks in later rounds but I can't. Especially when rivalry team from our division is doing it.

Right winger for a team with tonns of right wingers, I don't understand why he can be better than Lenny. Lenny is very smart and creative in decision making, Pikka 2.0 is very inconsistent.

Its a stupid feeling that I like Devils last pick more than any pick outside first two rounds. Like it was in 2021 and 2023. Now it is about three drafts in four years. And still Melovsky wouldn't be my favorite decision for his pick.

I wish Pikkarainen all the best. As a trade asset potential... When I think about third round pick - its a good asset - you can trade 2nd and 3rd for really good NHLer. Pikkarainen should work really hard to be at least worth this 3rd round pick level asset.

I don't like the pick. But if course I will root for him and I hope he will learn the game on the fly.
I don’t like the transition away from forwards with a base of good skating. Of course we need guys with size, physicality, and board play, but over-correcting and taking a bunch of plodders isn’t the answer.

Like I said in the main draft thread, if this is a one-off draft like that it’s one thing. But I want them to focus back on guys that are already profiling with the team speed we were playing with in 2022
 

Guadana

Registered User
Mar 7, 2012
8,684
23,344
St Petersburg
I don’t like the transition away from forwards with a base of good skating. Of course we need guys with size, physicality, and board play, but over-correcting and taking a bunch of plodders isn’t the answer.

Like I said in the main draft thread, if this is a one-off draft like that it’s one thing. But I want them to focus back on guys that are already profiling with the team speed we were playing with in 2022
Speed isn’t the only thing. They should focus on iq, decision making, creativity and compete level. There were much more players who were players with higher potential but become role players because of lack of something that and something this. It’s not that hard to gain mass and teach forecheck for a player who is thinking the game well. On the other side players with lack of hockey iq even with good shot, skating and physics are struggling.

When people are saying “you can’t teach size” they are wrong. Because you can’t teach fast decision making. And I have this issues with this year draft. And previous year draft outside Lenny.
 

Guttersniped

Satan’s Wallpaper
Sponsor
Dec 20, 2018
23,129
52,438
Speed isn’t the only thing. They should focus on iq, decision making, creativity and compete level. There were much more players who were players with higher potential but become role players because of lack of something that and something this. It’s not that hard to gain mass and teach forecheck for a player who is thinking the game well. On the other side players with lack of hockey iq even with good shot, skating and physics are struggling.

When people are saying “you can’t teach size” they are wrong. Because you can’t teach fast decision making. And I have this issues with this year draft. And previous year draft outside Lenny.

You can’t make not like the Melovsky pick lol.
 

Guadana

Registered User
Mar 7, 2012
8,684
23,344
St Petersburg
Maybe it’s my desperation for centers but I like that pick.
I don’t remember where, but I said in some topic that I like Melovsky pick more than all our other picks outside 1-2 rounds. Even if Melovsky wouldn’t be my choice in the same situation. But I still like him more than Traff, Pikka, Graham, Veeti as a pick. As I liked our last 2021 Bardakov’s pick more than others outside 1-2 round, as I liked Karpovich’s pick more than others outside 1-2 rounds. Barabosha could be my top later pick in 2022, but I liked Orlov more. Still silver medal. I should admit that Vilen was a good pick too in 2021 and he looks like a player with real NHL potential.
Why we cant start to draft in 3-7 rounds for potential before our latest choice is coming?
 

evnted

Registered User
Apr 14, 2016
857
2,338
after a couple weeks of mysteriously being DTD w an injury, pikkarainen finally debuted for red deer. out for most of the day so only saw the 3rd, but didnt wanna not comment on it. for context, oil kings were up 5-0 when i tuned in
  • couple aspects to his game that already look like theyre gonna give major junior kids trouble: his puck protection/physical instincts/raw strength on the puck, his ability to thread tight passing lanes against softer defenses (saw a few of these, including a long stretch pass on the breakout), and his bite/agitator nature (at one point he visibly aggravated sawchyn with a drive-by shove to the face lol)
  • pace of play looked to be giving him trouble. coasted too much, skating looked a little sluggish, and outside of the aforementioned puck protection, he didnt have much of an answer for higher pace backchecking or defenders closing in on him. looked very...upright/stationary as well, which made him easy to cover offensively and easy to get by defensively
  • too lax on the puck, didnt seem super responsive to pressure coming his way. led to some turnovers
i imagine there could be an adjustment period here (both from jumping to NA major junior as well as from missing a little time) so nothing to really read into yet, just preliminary impressions
 

evnted

Registered User
Apr 14, 2016
857
2,338
after exactly one (1) game, pikkarainen is back injured again, timeline TBD. finally confirmed that the previous one was lower body (as is this one) so i imagine he re-aggravated it in the game he played
 

Guttersniped

Satan’s Wallpaper
Sponsor
Dec 20, 2018
23,129
52,438
after exactly one (1) game, pikkarainen is back injured again, timeline TBD. finally confirmed that the previous one was lower body (as is this one) so i imagine he re-aggravated it in the game he played

I didn’t know that Kasper Pikkarainen’s season took a dark turn until today when I noticed he still only played one game for Red Deer.

From TBD…
IMG_0288.jpeg
IMG_0286.jpeg

to Indefinite.
IMG_0301.jpeg
IMG_0300.jpeg

So very bad then. Cool.
 

My3Sons

Nobody told me there'd be days like these...
Sponsor
  • Like
Reactions: Guttersniped

HBK27

HFBoards Sponsor
Sponsor
Aug 5, 2005
14,294
15,698
Northern NJ
Was just checking up on how our prospects were doing and noticed that Pikkarainen has still only played 1 game so far this season. Can't find any info on his injury, but obviously not good that he's missed so much time already. Sucks as he probably would've been considered for Finland for the WJC's.
 

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad