Topias Leinonen

July 2024- An injury-riddled campaign derailed Leinonen’s 2023-2024 season. He played just four games with JYP U20 in Finland’s junior league and struggled, recording a save percentage of 3.28 and a goals-against average of .871. In six games in Liiga, his totals ballooned to 4.14 and .844, respectively. He could not participate in the 2024 IIHF World Juniors, although he returned to Finland’s U20 league for the postseason, posting improved totals of 2.78 and .892 in seven matches. Unfortunately, 2023-2024 was a write-off for Leinonen. He was previously injured in 2022 during the Sabres’ development camp. He is slated to join Mora IK of Sweden’s HockeyAllsvenskan for the upcoming season. Kevin Wong

May 2023 – In his D+1 season, the 19-year-old Leinonen returned to JYP’s U20 affiliate in Finland. He played in 23 games with them, posting a save percentage of 0.855 and a goals-against average of 2.72. His record with the team was 12-10-0-1; JYP U20 were among the lower-scoring clubs in the division and did not qualify for the postseason. The teams goals-against total of 132 was similar to all but three of the eight playoff teams. Leinonen also had a brief experience at the Mestis and Liiga levels for the second year in a row. This season, he fared better than in last year’s stint in Liiga. In eight games with the top-level JYP, Leinonen recorded a save percentage of .858 and a GAA of 3.08. He tallied a record of 1-5-1-1. JYP were not successful this season — neither the team’s regular starting goaltender nor backup posted a winning record. Leinonen, the highest-drafted goaltender of the 2022 NHL Draft class, remains quite early in his professional development but continues to improve despite his current organization’s lack of team success. Kevin Wong

July 2022 – The Buffalo Sabres have selected Leinonen in the second round of the 2022 NHL Draft, 41st overall. Nick Richard

June 2022 – Goaltenders with a 6-4 frame who process the game at a high level are typically a good bet for success at the professional level. This is the case with 18-year-old Finnish goaltender Topias Leinonen.

The goaltender for JYP’s U20 team this past year plays an intriguing game to evaluate as a scout. On one hand, Leinonen shines in many of the aspects that one would look for in a developing goalie. The size is obvious. His positioning and situational adjustments are strong. He anticipates play well and can read shooters’ intentions. His edgework and leg strength allow for quick lateral movements. However, there are some serious holes in his game that will have to be addressed. Although it improved as the season progressed, Leinonen has a bad case of “busy feet”. This means that he often fails to set his feet when the puck is being released, leading to unnecessary movement during shots. This, in combination with his occasionally nonchalant lateral movement, leads to poor rebounds and avoidable difficulty on shots. Another area of his game that will require some improvement is his glove positioning. Leinonen tends to play with relatively passive hands, meaning that he often fails to aggressively position his gloves to cut off shooting angles. This is particularly evident on shots off of lateral movement or screens.

To summarize, Leinonen is a goaltender with the tools to become an NHLer. Positive aspects of his game including size and game processing are impossible/difficult to teach and are projectable at the next level. He appears to be in line for some sustained action in Finland’s men’s league next year, which, if coupled with an appropriate development plan, will allow him to take his game to the next level. He is likely to be one of the first goalies to be selected at the NHL draft this July. Colin Hunter