Completely agree with Pronman here and I've said basically the same things. Great playmaker, very noticeable, sees the ice and his ability to read the play is what gives him the upper-hand. I compared Lias Andersson to football Jari Litmanen, with his vision basically making up for his slower movement compared to others.
Kotkaniemi has that same vision but with a bit more pace. What he lacks in the physical aspect of the game, he makes up for with his playmaking. I also see what Pronman says about him not being afraid to try to risky pass. He really sees the game and manages to make those crisp passes that you just don't expect.
One other thing about Kotkaniemi that you see with a lot of European young skaters these days (Buchnevich, Necas, Chytil, Lias, Boqvist, Dahlin, Pettersson etc all have this) is that they rarely dump the puck. Instead, they circle back and try to build an attack from the back. I think the different style is refreshing to see when you are watching NHL hockey each night. It takes the tempo out of the game at times, but it makes the talented players with good playmaking skills and vision more important to the game of hockey.
And let's not forget that Kotkaniemi is doing all this at the age of 17, in Liiga, the 3rd best league in Europe, against professional hockey players. Liiga might be a step down from the SHL but it's still a high quality league. At the start of the season, everyone was zoned in on Kupari but I never had the same gut feeling about Kupari that I had about Kotkaniemi. While he is a flashy player when he gets into the game, Kupari lacks the consistency and patience. Not a bad player and still first round talent, but Kotkaniemi has definitely shown to be the superior player. If we somehow draft Kotkaniemi, I will probably plan to see him a few times when I go to Helsinki again in September and November. Pori is a city I have not visited yet
