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Zombiewolf · 05-11-2020, 05:53 PM

At the closer of the S53 playoffs team Finland is officially announcing their roster for the upcoming IIHF tournament. Finland is calling up a bunch of IIHF veterans with one rookie. Finland hopes to improve on their S52 performance as they just narrowly missed out on the medal round. The Finnish are not letting the heart breaking exit of last season deter them from succeeding in this year’s tournament. They are a strong core of players and are excited to prove their worth in this year’s tournament. Without furtherado here is Finland’s S53 roster:

The captains include Jax Aittokallio and Ensio Kalju as alternate captains and Poopity Scoop as the captain.

Jax Aittokallio is a seasoned veteran for the Manhattan rage playing ten total seasons for them and winning a challenge cup with them in S52. Jax is a scoring machine who is also not afraid to throw his weight around. He is a well respected member of Finland and is looking to have a productive tournament.
-@JayWhy

Ensio Kalju is a strong, high caliber defender who seemed to pumped up about this years tournament. Ensio played for New England this season and registered 24 points. He is a highly respected defender for New England playing in over 21 minutes a game which he hopes to translate to international success. Ensio also say a very impressive time in last years tournament with 13 points in 12 games. Finland will be looking to him as a leader.
-@jRuutu

Poopity Scoop gets the honors of being captain for the first time for Finland and is excited to represent his country. Scoop had arguably the best season as a defender in the SHL registering 16 goals and 57 points. He recorded a total of 134 hits which is well over two hits a game and hopes to continue this success for Finland. He played over 24 minutes a game for Buffalo this season and was a tad bit disappointed that his SHL season was cut short. However, he is not letting that get to him as his head remains high while practicing with his Finnish teammates.
-@Baelor Swift

The rest of the roster includes three defenders who will be playing as forwards this season and one rookie. First, I will go through Finland’s forwards.

Nathan Explosion is a core left winger of the San Francisco Pride and an integral member of the Finnish squad. He has played for about four seasons or so for the Pride and has enjoyed an admiral stat line. Although, he is not a star player for his team he still has a good work ethic and will be looking for that same success for Finland in this tournament.
-@micool132

Josef Kubinec is primarily a left winger who will be playing on the right side for Finland this year. He is a crucial member of the Texas Renegade. Texas had a disappointing season this year but that has never discouraged Josef as he scored the second most amount of points for Texas with 33 on 114 shots. He knows his team is not the best, but he always plays with a positive attitude. Last tournament Josef played an important role on Finland’s first line and we expect to the same this tournament. He will be suiting up for Finland for the third time.
-@Leoben

Michael Fitted joined Finland around the same time as Kubinec but has no enjoyed the same success. Still though, he has constantly been improving his game. He is also three years younger than Kubinec so his ceiling remains high. Fitted’s Finnish pride remains high as he is actively trying to recruit other people to the team. He remains highly active; however, he is on a less than stellar SHL team being on Tampa Bay. He is looking to absolutely kill it on the international level as he seeks a higher roll within the squad.
-@Fitted2106

Kaarlo Kekkonen is an integral member of his junior team, the Detroit Falcons. The Detroit Falcons are currently in the finals of the four star cup, which Kekkonen is fighting hard in playing in almost 20 minutes a game as a forward. Kekkonen is one of the younger members of the team but has a fantastic attitude. Kekkonen is a 5 star prospect and Finland is excited to see what he can do on the international level.
-@dankoa

Eero Niemi is a long time member of Finland and his SHL team Minnesota. Eero did not have the best time in last years tournament but will be looking to improve this time around. Eero is not the flashiest player you will ever see but he is hardworking and gritty. He does the job on ice that nobody ever wants to do.
-@spooked

Willie Fisterbottom who normally plays defender but will be playing as a center for Finland this time around currently does not have a SHL team. He is remaining active in the hopes that he will have a SHL home soon. In the meantime, he is excited to play on the internal level with Finland.
-@Ragnar

Björn Leppänen is a current defender for Texas but plans on playing on the wing for Finland during this tournament. Leppänen has played three seasons now in the SHL, all for Texas, and started to get the groove of things. He does not have star caliber stats, but Texas did not have the best of seasons this year. He still plays almost 22 minutes for Texas and remains a key player for them. We should expect to see Leppänen on the second line and I have a feeling he will have a great tournament.
-@puolivalmiste

Santtu Räsänen, a center for the Anchorage Armada, suited up for the first time for Finland last year and is expected to have a slightly bigger role for them this season. The Finnish management was impressed with what they saw of him last year and what he has done with Armada. While playing for the Armada he registered 26 points playing 15 minutes a game. Räsänen remains highly active and involved with his junior team. Räsänen was drafted by the Rage in the second round of the S53 draft. We expect him to remain with the Armada for the next few seasons as he continues to develop but he should be a stellar SHL player when his time comes.
-@KenitohMenara

Jaska Seppälä will be playing for Finland for the second time. He saw a limited roll for Finland last tournament as he was just figuring out his role on the squad. He is currently playing in the finals for the junior tournament and remains a crucial member of his junior squad, the Kelowna Knights. He was drafted by Buffalo with the seventh overall pick and remains highly active.
-@Zombiewolf

Jukka Timonen who came into the league around the same time as Seppälä normally plays as a defender but will be playing on the right wing for Finland. Timonen was a very important member of the Newfoundland Berserkers playing over 26 minutes a game. He registered 28 points and had a 75 DGR. Timonen has a very high ceiling but will probably see a limited role for Finland in this tournament as he continues to develop.
-@Smalinowski7

Finland’s defensive-core includes four members:

Tatu Mäkelä has been a long time member of the SHL and for Finland and will be retiring at the conclusion of the tournament. In his long serving career he lifted the Challenge Cup twice and have played for Finland in many tournaments. Mäkelä’s age has been getting to him as he only registered 19 points, which is still impressive given his age. Finland’s management is sad to see Mäkelä go but they understand and wish him the best. Expect to see a good performance out of Mäkelä as he will be trying to go out guns blazing
-@Wannabefinn

Jules Watt is a defensive defenseman for Chicago. This year for Chicago he only registered seven points but still had a 72 DGR and played in over 20 minutes a game. Watt had an impressive performance in last seasons tournament with seven points in 12 games. Finland does not expect his low stat line in the SHL discourage him on the international level as he seeks to get Finland into the medal round.
-@nykonax

Bradley Barkov is an important member of his junior team, the Colorado Raptors where he registered 27 points and played in about 24 minutes a game. Barkov will be suiting up for Finland for the second time and seeks to play a bigger role for Finland. Barkov remains highly active and that activity as impressed his SHL team as he was drafted by the Calgary Dragons at ninth overall.
-@MarlinManiac4

Miikka Salo is a current defender for the Tampa Bay Barracuda. He is a seasoned veteran for Finland and hopes to give Finland a fighting chance to advance to the medal round. He scored three points in last seasons tournament and hopes to improve in this tournament. When asked by his teammates and management, they remark his work ethic is extremely high and he is an all around joy to have in the locker room.
-@mcgriddleluver

Finland will be calling up two goalies for this tournament.

Harry Carpet is highly regarded as one of the best goalies in the SHL. Carpet has been plagued with a less than impressive SHL team, however, this has not stopped him from giving his all while in net. Carpet has been a crucial member of team Finland. We have multiple reports coming from members of the Finland squad who have all admitted there have been many times where Carpet has carried them to victory. It will be excited to see what kind of miracle save he pulls over in this year’s tournament.
-@Carpy48

White Goodman suited up for the first time for Finland last season, but he was limited to just 91 minutes. With Carpet commanding the net, we do not expect Goodman’s role to change for Finland. Goodman is a young goalie but is already the starter for Texas, playing in 41 games this season and registered a .906% save percentage. Goodman is one of the better backups in the tournament and Finland is extremely pleased to have him.
-@Jearim

Last but not least, Finland is very excited to announce a newcomer to the team!

SLATT Potts is regarded as a five star rookie had an impressive season for his junior team the Newfoundland Berserkers. During the season, he scored 20 goals and registered 34 points. His season was so impressive Finland decided to give him a call. Potts was drafted sixth overall for the Baltimore Platoon (then West Kendall Platoon) and still remains a top earner for his draft. Finland is very excited to see what he does during this tournament and how he develops as a star player in the future.
-@Rindiee

Summary:
C Jax Aittokallio (A)
LW Nathan Explosion
RW Josef Kubinec
C Michael Fitted
LW Kaarlo Kekkonen
RW Eero Niemi
C Willie Fisterbottom
LW Björn Leppänen
RW SLATT Potts ®
C Santtu Räsänen
LW Jaska Seppälä
RW Jukka Timonen

Defensemen:

Poopity Scoop ©
Ensio Kalju (A)
Tatu Mäkelä
Jules Watt
Bradley Barkov
Miikka Salo

Goalies:

Harry Carpet
White Goodman