LD Mikko Kokkonen - Jukurit, Liiga (2019, 84th, TOR)

[MMC]

Welcome to Toronto!

 

[Paradoc]

Welcome Kokkonen! Seems to have solid number playing against men league and plays a smart defensive game.

I think people have mentioned that he has weak skating which attributed to him falling in the draft.

If he can fix his skating then the Leafs have got themselves a great player.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Welcome Kokkonen! Seems to have solid number playing against men league and plays a smart defensive game.

I think people have mentioned that he has weak skating which attributed to him falling in the draft.

If he can fix his skating then the Leafs have got themselves a great player.

I think he has average skating, but 5'11, an average skater without huge offensive ability, you might not go in the first round.

 

[ijuka]

I think he has average skating, but 5'11, an average skater without huge offensive ability, you might not go in the first round.

I think the offensive ability's underrated, his scoring in Liiga was very high and he's competent offensively.

 

[Saxon]

Unfortunately, very good pick.

 

[AppsSyl]

My favourite Leafs pick so far this draft. Think he is going to be a good one.

 

[BoredBrandonPridham]

Pronman had a write up about him in The Athletic:

Pros:
====
- Played big role (20+ mins) on bad Liiga team @ 17
- High IQ

Neutral:
======
- Skill

Con:
====
- Skating
- Size (in the sense that speed may not increase much because he's already 200lbs)

 

[Sempiternal]

An overrated goalie signed to a ridiculous contract. Oops, wrong guy.

 

[Isaac Nootin]

Really like what the Leafs did with their 2nd (Robertson) and 3rd (Kokkonen) round draft picks.

Both have potential to be impact players, IMO.

 

[ijuka]

An overrated goalie signed to a ridiculous contract. Oops, wrong guy.

Well, Kokko is a bonfire and Koski is a (water)rapid.

Pronman had a write up about him in The Athletic:

Pros:
====
- Played big role (20+ mins) on bad Liiga team @ 17
- High IQ

Neutral:
======
- Skill

Con:
====
- Skating
- Size (in the sense that speed may not increase much because he's already 200lbs)

This is overall good, but I don't think his skill is just neutral. It's above, at least a bit.

 

[Peasy]

I think he has average skating, but 5'11, an average skater without huge offensive ability, you might not go in the first round.

Sounds just like Sandin.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Sounds just like Sandin.

I was not high on Sandin pre-draft, so it’s not a terrible comparison. Sandin-lite is a possibility, in my opinion.

 

[BoredBrandonPridham]

Well, Kokko is a bonfire and Koski is a (water)rapid.

This is overall good, but I don't think his skill is just neutral. It's above, at least a bit.

Yea I think the sentiment was that he had average skill though had relatively good hands. He didn’t seem to list it as something he was particularly high on nor was it an attribute that really worked in his favour, so didn’t want to bucket it as a pro or a con.

 

[Skeletorrr]

I've seen him play a couple of times last season.
He reminds me of few inches shorter version of Olli Määttä, including the skating part. He has acknowledged that his skating is his biggest weakness and he says he's working hard to improve in that field.
He already has a body of a man, but he falls down a lot in thight spaces. If he can improve on his skating and balance I can definitely see him playing in the NHL.

 

[Orfieus]

5'11" and 200lbs the kid is a tree stump and I think he will transition to NA hockey just nicely. I hope Toronto brings him over to either the CHL or AHL, I'm just very excited to see what he can do on NA ice!

 

[A4T1L6]

Let Barb work some of her magic

 

[bukwas]

Only 1 gp this season.
Anyone know whats going on with him?

 

[FinPanda]

Only 1 gp this season.
Anyone know whats going on with him?

He came from injury and played with A-juniors after that. I don't know anything else about him though.

 

[Newfoundland]

Come to the growlers please !!!!!

 

[JJTT]

Only 1 gp this season.
Anyone know whats going on with him?

He had a concussion/shoulder injury in a practice game with the national team in August. Fell very awkardly into the boards head first. Just getting back into 100% now.

 

[SCampo98]

Surprised nobody wrote about him after the World Juniors. I thought he played nicely, a rather average game which is nice from an under-ager in the World Juniors. I can’t wait to continue tracking his development, and see what kind of player he becomes for the Leafs.

 

[Dan10900]

Surprised nobody wrote about him after the World Juniors. I thought he played nicely, a rather average game which is nice from an under-ager in the World Juniors. I can’t wait to continue tracking his development, and see what kind of player he becomes for the Leafs.

Yeah, he's solid, I think he kind of goes under the radar with all the hype going to Robertson (rightfully so, Kokkonen is not close to as good as Robertson, but i never hear anything about him, and have Robertson news forced down my throat already lol)

 

[FlyguyOX]

He had a poor season IMO and I thought alot about him before.

 

[LeafChief]

Picked up an assist in the opener of the WJHC vs Germany. Looking steady so far.

 

[Svedu]

Yep, Kokkonen impressed me. Not as much as Niemelä and Heinola but Kokkonen was a clear third after them.