Aleksanteri Kaskimäki

January 2024 – Even though he is considered a center, Kaskimaki spent the majority of the 2024 World Junior Championship playing on the left wing of the second line. It was not catastrophic, but it was still an underwhelming tournament for him. He finished with only four points in seven games, falling short of the expectations for a 19-year-old in this competition. All signs indicate that Kaskimaki will return to the Liiga to continue his development in his home country. Cedrick Blais-Turcotte

October 2023 – After a disappointing last season, Kaskimaki has already made significant progress this year with HIFK. In just 12 games, he not only matched his goal total from the previous year (three), but also increased his shots per game from 1.6 to 2.3. This improvement has already had an impact on his ice time, as he is playing an additional three minutes per game. Although it is still too early to jump to conclusions, it’s undoubtedly a major step taken by the young center. Cedrick Blais-turcotte

June 2023 – Kaskimaki’s weight increased by 13 pounds since his 2022 draft, but it did not translate to a better performance on the ice. Last season, in 41 games in the Liiga, Kaskimaki scored only seven points. Despite his reduced role on the team, this was not sufficient. When on the ice, his team only scores eight goals all season, and he did not help that with an awful 4.62 shooting percentage. His playoff performance was a glimmer of hope in an otherwise disappointing season as he equaled his goal tally for the year in just seven games. Cedrick Blais-Turcotte 

July 2022 – Kaskimäki was drafted 73rd overall by the St. Louis Blues. Pat Quinn

May 2022 – Kaskimäki had a successful draft-year campaign, scoring 19 goals and adding 21 assists in 31 U20 games in Finland and scoring his first two professional points in the Liiga, earning a goal and an assist in four games for HIFK. The prospect also wore an A at the U18 Worlds, scoring four points in six gams for Finland at the tournament.

A high-end skater with good puck skills, Kaskimäki weaves in and out of pressure very well, and mans the transition quite well. He can connect plays at high speeds and make himself an option off the puck, while having the one-on-one skill to be a handful for defenders, especially at the junior level. His defensive game and vision need to come quite a long way for him to stick as a center at the pro level, and projects better as a winger given his strengths and weaknesses, but Kaskimäki is definitely worth a top-75 pick as a result of his high offensive ceiling. Hadi Kalakeche