Nikolas Matinpalo

June 2025 – The Ottawa Senators signed Matinpalo to a one-year, two-way contract extension on June 20, 2025. The contract is valued at $775,000 in the National Hockey League and $200,000 in the American Hockey League.

Matinpalo is a defense-minded defenseman who won’t provide much offensively, excels in a shutdown role, and is a strong penalty killer. He will have the opportunity to become a full-time NHL player in 2025-26 with the Senators, but the two-way contract will enable him to be sent to the AHL without risking being claimed on waivers. Mark Henry

March 2025 – A late fill-in on defense for Finland in the Four Nations Face-Off, Matinpalo was given the challenging task of going against the world’s best forwards on a depleted Finnish blue line. Overall, it was a good experience for Matinpalo, showing he could compete with McDavid, Mackinnon, and Matthews. Playing on Finland’s third pairing, Matinpalo was often matched against each team’s best players. Against the USA and Canada, he got caught the odd time being indecisive on where to go on the defensive end, allowing that split second needed for the opposing players to capitalize. He finished the tournament pointless and with a minus-five plus-minus. Despite the poor stat line, he showed off his good skating and long stick, which allowed Matinpalo to reduce time and space for his opponents. He competes on every play and is physical in the corners and front of the net. Despite the outcome for Matinpalo and Team Finland, this tournament proved to be a great growing opportunity for the Senators defenseman. Andrew Barrett

May 2023 – Matinpalo signed with Ottawa on a two-way contract for the 2023-2024 season. The 24-year-old played for Assat in the Liiga last season, scoring seven goals and adding nine assists in 41 games. He was invited to play for Finland at the 2023 World Championships and, in seven games, had a goal, two assists, and was a plus-five. Matinpalo has seen some time on the power play with Assat and possesses good distribution skills and a decent wrist shot. His strength should be without the puck, as he has reasonable gap control and a good active stick when defending the rush or down low. The Senators will look for Matinpalo as depth on their blueline as a sixth or seventh defender or in Belleville in the top four. There are some similarities between Artem Zub and Matinpalo, such as both being undrafted and brought to North America at around the same age. Grant Campbell