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Topi Niemelä

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Topi Niemelä
Born (2002-03-25)25 March 2002,
Oulu, Finland
Height
Weight 		6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Right
NHL team (P)
Cur. team 		Toronto Maple Leafs
Oulun Kärpät (Liiga)
NHL Draft 64th overall, 2020
Toronto Maple Leafs
Playing career 2019–present

Topi Niemelä (born 25 March 2002) is a Finnish professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing for Oulun Kärpät of the Finnish Liiga on loan as a prospect to the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL).[1] Niemelä was drafted 64th overall by the Maple Leafs in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, ranking within the top ten of European skaters.[2][3]

Playing career[]

Following a break out year with Kärpät in 2021–22 season, Niemelä was signed to a future three-year, entry-level contract with draft club, the Toronto Maple Leafs, on 13 May 2022.[4]

International play[]

Medal record
Competitor for Flag of Finland Finland
Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
Silver 2022 Canada
Bronze 2021 Canada

At the 2021 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, Niemelä led all defensemen in points, accumulating two goals and six assists on the way to winning the bronze medal with Team Finland.[5][6] After the end of the tournament, he was named Best Defenceman by the IIHF Directorate.[7] He joined Team Finland again for the 2022 edition of the tournament. The team reached the gold medal game this time, playing against Team Canada, and Niemelä played a pivotal role in the game's most famous moment, when his potentially game-winning shot into a wide open Canadian net was knocked out of midair by Canadian captain Mason McTavish, preventing Finnish victory. The Finns won the silver medal.[8]

Career statistics[]

Regular season and playoffs[]

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2018–19 Oulun Kärpät Jr. A 39 1 7 8 16 11 1 3 4 2
2019–20 Oulun Kärpät Liiga 43 1 6 7 8 — — — — —
2019–20 Oulun Kärpät Jr. A 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
2020–21 Oulun Kärpät Liiga 15 0 4 4 2 4 0 2 2 0
2020–21 Oulun Kärpät Jr. A 6 1 3 4 0 — — — — —
2021–22 Oulun Kärpät Liiga 48 10 22 32 20 6 0 1 1 2
Liiga totals 106 11 32 43 30 10 0 3 3 2

International[]

Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM
2018 Finland U17 6 1 0 1 2
2019 Finland U18 5 1 0 1 0
2019 Finland HG18 3 0 3 3 0
2021 Finland WJC 7 2 6 8 6
2022 Finland WJC 7 0 6 6 2
Junior totals 28 4 15 19 10

References[]

  1. ↑ Topi Niemelä player profile. eliteprospects.com (7 June 2020). Retrieved on 7 June 2020.
  2. ↑ NHL Draft 2020 prospect rankings: Preseason top 62 players on next year's big board (July 31, 2019). Retrieved on August 13, 2019.
  3. ↑ Lafreniere headlines 2020 NHL Draft prospects (June 22, 2019). Retrieved on August 13, 2019.
  4. ↑ Maple Leafs sign Roni Hirvonen and Topi Niemela to entry-level contracts. Toronto Maple Leafs (13 May 2022). Retrieved on 13 May 2022.
  5. ↑ IIHF - Statistics 2021 IIHF WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP (en).
  6. ↑ IIHF - Lundell leads Finns to bronze (en).
  7. ↑ IIHF - Zegras named MVP (en).
  8. ↑ Alter, David (August 20, 2022). Maple Leafs Prospect Niemela Has World Juniors Winning Goal Snatched Away by Unbelievable Defensive Play.

External links[]

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