Aleksi Saarela

Aleksi Saarela
Born (1997-01-07) 7 January 1997
Helsinki, Finland
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 198 lb (90 kg; 14 st 2 lb)
Position Centre
Shoots Left
NHL team (P)
Cur. team
Former teams		 Carolina Hurricanes
Charlotte Checkers (AHL)
Lukko
Ässät
NHL Draft 89th overall, 2015
New York Rangers
Playing career 2013–present

Aleksi Saarela (born 7 January 1997) is a Finnish professional ice hockey forward. He is currently under contract as a prospect to the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was originally selected 89th overall in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft by the New York Rangers.

Playing career

Saarela made his SM-liiga debut playing with Lukko during the 2012–13 SM-liiga season.[1] On 28 February 2016, the rights to Saarela, along with a 2016 second-round draft pick and a 2017 second-round draft pick, were traded from the New York Rangers to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Eric Staal.[2][3]

In the 2015–16 season, Saarela led Porin Ässät with 20 goals and finished third in overal scoring with 33 points in 51 games. On 20 April 2016, he signed a one-year contract to return to his original club, Lukko, on a one-year contract.[4] Under two months later, on 13 June 2016, Saarela was then signed to a three-year entry-level contract with the Carolina Hurricanes.[5]

On 3 January 2018, Saarela was recalled by the Carolina Hurricanes from the Charlotte Checkers prior to a game with the Pittsburgh Penguins.[6] However, it was short lived as he was sent back down days later without playing a game.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2012–13 Lukko Jr. A 22 8 10 18 6 10 2 6 8 2
2012–13 Lukko SM-l 3 1 1 2 0 — — — — —
2013–14 Lukko Jr. A 17 6 16 22 8 — — — — —
2013–14 Lukko Liiga 12 0 2 2 2 — — — — —
2014–15 Ässät Liiga 51 6 6 12 18 2 0 0 0 0
2015–16 Ässät Liiga 51 20 13 33 14 — — — — —
2016–17 Lukko Liiga 49 15 13 28 10 — — — — —
2016–17 Charlotte Checkers AHL 9 6 4 10 2 5 0 0 0 2
2017–18 Charlotte Checkers AHL 69 25 18 43 8 8 2 1 3 2
Liiga totals 166 42 35 77 44 2 0 0 0 0
Medal record
Representing  Finland
Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
2016 Finland
IIHF World U18 Championships
2015 Switzerland

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2013 Finland U17 7th 5 2 2 4 2
2014 Finland WJC18 6th 2 1 0 1 0
2015 Finland WJC18 2nd, silver medalist(s) 7 3 5 8 6
2016 Finland WJC 1st, gold medalist(s) 7 4 3 7 4
Junior totals 21 10 10 20 12

References

  1. ↑ "2012–13 Lukko player statistics". Eliteprospects.com. 2013-04-01. Retrieved 2013-04-01.
  2. ↑ "Canes Acquire Saarela, Picks for Eric Staal". Carolina Hurricanes. 28 February 2016. Retrieved 28 February 2016.
  3. ↑ "Rangers Acquire Eric Staal from Carolina". Blueshirts United. 28 February 2016. Archived from the original on 1 March 2016. Retrieved 28 February 2016.
  4. ↑ "Aleksi Saarela returns home" (in Finnish). Lukko Rauma. 2016-04-20. Retrieved 2016-04-20.
  5. ↑ "Canes agree to terms with Aleksi Saarela". Carolina Hurricanes. 2016-06-13. Retrieved 2016-06-13.
  6. ↑ Williams, Terrell (3 January 2018). "Canes Recall Aleksi Saarela From Charlotte". NHL.com. Retrieved 10 March 2018.


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