Juuso Välimäki

Juuso Välimäki (born 6 October 1998) is a Finnish ice hockey defenceman who is currently playing on loan for Ilves of the Finnish Liiga as a prospect to the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Calgary Flames in the first-round, 16th overall, in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.

Playing career
Välimäki was born in Tampere, Finland, but grew up in Nokia, Finland. Välimäki received an invitation to the Finnish Independence Day Reception in 2016.

Välimäki was selected 14th overall by the Tri-City Americans in the 2015 CHL Import draft. He played three seasons with the Americans before signing a three-year, entry-level contract with the Calgary Flames on 21 July 2017.

Välimäki made his NHL debut on 3 October against the Vancouver Canucks. He scored his first NHL goal on 17 October 2018, the third Flames goal in a 5–2 victory over the Boston Bruins; Välimäki scored the goal on Tuukka Rask, who had lost control of the puck after initially catching a piece of Välimäki's shot.

After sitting out the 2019–20 season due to a torn ACL injury, and with the following North American season delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Välimäki was loaned by the Flames to Finnish Liiga club, Ilves, to start the 2020–21 season on 30 September 2020.

International play
Välimäki captained the gold medal-winning team at the 2016 IIHF World U18 Championships. In December 2017, Välimäki was named captain of Team Finland at the 2018 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.