According to GM Lehtinen, all the possible NHL additions have been announced. If more are coming, they'll be coming after the 2nd round. That means no Lehterä.
My notes after today's game:
Husso is growing on me. The best word to describe him would be "nonchalant". He looks very steady and calm and makes even the big saves appear like routine work. Yet I don't think he's on his way to become the starter just yet, the job is still Säteri's to lose. However, we're definitely in a situation where the management can safely try the other guy if the designated starter stumbles, instead of simply crossing their hands and praying the no.1 guy gets his act together because they trust the backup even less.
As for defense... I've no idea what kind of answers today gave to our coach. Well, I'm sure he did get some data, but I really can't tell what he's gonna make of it. We still have five locks - Nutivaara, Honka, Heiskanen, Pokka, and Kivistö - and the rest of the pack is battling for the remaining three spots. Though I must say, I earlier limited the options to four hopefuls, but I wouldn't be awfully surprised even if Näkyvä or Jürgens somehow made it. That crop is truly that indistinguishable from each other.
I was trying to keep extra close eye on Juolevi, since it was his first men's NT game. And the best word I could use about him is "mistake-free". He was given a fair look with a decent amount of minutes, though it was practically all on 5on5, he didn't feature in any special teams. His performance was solid, and I wouldn't mind it if he made it. But can I say he did anything that put him above the other hopefuls? Not really.
Oh right, maybe we have six locks, since
Hakanpää is still holding out hope.
In the forward department, Pesonen potentially punched his ticket. He sure put up a convincing performance, his PB award was well deserved. And what makes it even more impressive is that Marjamäki used him as a center. Late sure knew what he was doing when he invited Pessi, he might just be the piece that's gonna complement our projected top-six.
Sandell also had a good game. He's been surprisingly steady throughout the camp, so him making the cut to a bottom-six role or as an extra wouldn't be surprising, especially if Lajunen declines an invite.
That above piece about Hakanpää also contains a revelation that Junttila is not 100%. So taking that into account, I'd put my current projection of our forward lines as follows...
Teräväinen - Aho - Rantanen
Pesonen - Granlund - Kapanen
Manninen - Suomela - Savinainen
Peltola - Niemi - Anttila
Another option I was thinking is that Marjamäki may be looking to take advantage of the existing chemistries between the Växjö duo. In that case...
Teräväinen - Aho - Rantanen
Savinainen - Granlund - Kapanen
Pesonen - Suomela - Kiiskinen
Peltola - Niemi - Anttila
.
