Prospect Info: Rasmus Ristolainen (2013, 8th) – '14-15: Buffalo #55 (NHL) – 2015: Graduated

[Pajicz]

RR was a great pick for the Sabres, would've wanted to see Oilers take him though... have to change my avatar now.

 

[PlamsUnlimited]

RR was a great pick for the Sabres, would've wanted to see Oilers take him though... have to change my avatar now.

Change it to him in a Sabres jersey.

 

[Paxon]

I never drooled about that defense. Ever.

It would've made me drool after watching it fried my brain

 

[Paxon]

Johnny Boychuck a good comparison?


Or...for some reason Spacek keeps popping into my head when i think about this kid.

Boychuck makes a bit of sense as the three things that are most notable about him are size, heavy shot, and his hitting. Risto's favorite player is Shea Weber and that also makes sense at the high end.

Edit: I should say 'physical play' not 'hitting'. He's not the hitter Zadorov is but he's mean and effectively physical. The kind of guy who is physical in front of the net and in the corner. We'll see how his hitting comes along in a smaller rink. I didn't see Zadorov play in Russian juniors so outside of London I've only seen him in tournaments, but judging by his own words his hitting took a big step up in the OHL due to increased opportunity on the smaller ice and the different style of play.

 

[Sabreality]

Boychuck makes a bit of sense as the three things that are most notable about him are size, heavy shot, and his hitting. Risto's favorite player is Shea Weber and that also makes sense at the high end.

yeah I've heard Seabrook and Derek Morris (hopefully better than him) cited as comparisions

 

[Paxon]

yeah I've heard Seabrook and Derek Morris (hopefully better than him) cited as comparisions

Speaking of Morris, I was a huge fan of him when he broke into the league. I always used to trade for him in the NHL games of the early 00's. He never became a great top-pairing guy but he's very much a good player. Of course I'm in agreement here, hopefully Risto becomes a hands-down better player, but a Derek Morris floor wouldn't be the worst thing.

 

[Soapy3PO]

I love this pick.

I've seen only one game of him playing for Finland at the WJC but he stood out. Great in his zone, can get the puck moving, put up some big hits..

He's also been compared to Niklas Kronwall.

 

[RazielMoshman]

He's not Robyn Regehr. He's also not Sidney Crosby... if Sidney Crosby himself can even lift a team to the next level.

Mr Crosby has proven that recently, he cannot.

This was a great pick at the place we were at. Two monster dmen in the 1st round? I'll take that.

 

[Woodhouse]

Note: OP Addition

The OP's been fully edited and updated.

 

[loudis]

His agent said that Risto was listed at combine as 6'4/224lbs

 

[Sean McG]

What's the proper pronounciation of the 'lai' part of his last name? Risto-lay-nen or Risto-lie-nen?

 

[Paxon]

What's the proper pronounciation of the 'lai' part of his last name? Risto-lay-nen or Risto-lie-nen?

I hear Finnish announcers say it as "LIE".

 

[Pajicz]

What's the proper pronounciation of the 'lai' part of his last name? Risto-lay-nen or Risto-lie-nen?

The latter.

 

[Rhett4]

His agent said that Risto was listed at combine as 6'4/224lbs

You hope most 6'4" kids grow to 220 or 225. If true, he's already there, and there's none of this struggle for him to gain 15 or 20 pounds. (He seems to be listed around 207 many other places, though.)

 

[couture23]

Him and Armia will be future roommates.

 

[THEKOSTAJA]

I have seen 70+ games where Ristolainen has played, and I can say that you drafted a beast. RR is very mean in front of the net, but occasionally gets lost in his own zone. Good passing skills. TSN announcers said that he has "one of the best shots in the draft" I find that quite hard to believe really. He barely shoots anyway, and when he does, It's decent I guess. But overall a great prospect who will have a great career.



My favorite clip of Ristolainen

 

[La Cosa Nostra]

After rewatching the clip of RR getting drafted and how visibly excited/enthusiastic Kevin Devine was when he came on stage, there is little doubt that RR was #5 on their board the whole time.He had a big grin and slapped Risto on the arm three times

 

[SoFFacet]

Moar Finns moar wins...

 

[TheHoff]

What do ya think, could this guy be a partner for the Hoff? Or would it better to pair him with Myers to compensate his awful defensive plays (but there may be speed problems)?

Edit: just saw that he sometimes have problems in his own zone, too. I hope that this will be happening not too often.

 

[Finnpin]

His agent said that Risto was listed at combine as 6'4/224lbs

That's great to hear. NA reports about heights/weights in so many sites are often old info.

 

[Digable5]

What do ya think, could this guy be a partner for the Hoff? Or would it better to pair him with Myers to compensate his awful defensive plays (but there may be speed problems)?

Edit: just saw that he sometimes have problems in his own zone, too. I hope that this will be happening not too often.

Darcy wants a LHD with a RHD which means Risto and Myers will likely not play together. Your right side would be Myers, Risto, Pysyk, McBain (JGL). Although Ehrhoff says he prefers the right side, the LHD are Ehrhoff, Weber, Ruhwedel, McNabb (Zadorov, McCabe)

 

[Jacob582]

Darcy wants a LHD with a RHD which means Risto and Myers will likely not play together. Your right side would be Myers, Risto, Pysyk, McBain (JGL). Although Ehrhoff says he prefers the right side, the LHD are Ehrhoff, Weber, Ruhwedel, McNabb (Zadorov, McCabe)

Ruhwedel is a RHD.

 

[Paxon]

Ruhwedel is a RHD.

But of course NHL 13 has him as left-handed and Baptiste as a really pale white guy

 

[Finnpin]

Ristolainen lands deal with CCM-Reebok.

https://twitter.com/THNRyanKennedy

Others are MacKinnon, Drouin and Jones at least.

 

[Paxon]

Ristolainen lands deal with CCM-Reebok.

https://twitter.com/THNRyanKennedy

Others are MacKinnon, Drouin and Jones at least.

Will they market a Risto-Line of gear???!????

...I hate myself