Urho Vaakanainen
| Urho Vaakanainen | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
1 January 1999 Joensuu, Finland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
| Weight | 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb) | ||
| Position | Defence | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| NHL team (P) Cur. team Former teams |
Boston Bruins Providence Bruins (AHL) Espoo Blues JYP Jyväskylä SaiPa | ||
| NHL draft |
18th overall, 2017 Boston Bruins | ||
| Playing career | 2015–present | ||
Urho Vaakanainen (born 1 January 1999) is a Finnish professional ice hockey defenseman who is currently playing with the Providence Bruins in the American Hockey League (AHL) as a prospect to the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected 18th overall by the Bruins in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.
Playing career
Vaakanainen played as a youth in his native Finland with the Espoo Blues. He made his professional debut with the Espoo Blues in the Liiga during the 2015–16 season, contributing with 6 points in 25 games. On 28 April 2016, Vaakanainen signed a one-year deal with hometown club, JYP Jyväskylä.[1]
Vaakanainen earned a regular role within the JYP Jyväskylä blueline in the 2016–17 season, appearing in a career high 41 games, in matching his offensive output with 6 points. He registered 3 assists in 14 post-season games before losing in 7 games in the semi-finals to KalPa.[2] On 5 May 2017, Vaakanainen left JYP Jyväskylä after just one season and signed a one-year contract with his third Liiga club, SaiPa.[3] Vaakanainen's progress was recognised as he was drafted in the first-round, 18th overall, in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft by the Boston Bruins in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.[4] On 13 June 2018, Vaakanainen signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Bruins.[5]
International play
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  Finland
| ||
| Men's ice hockey | ||
| IIHF U18 Championships | ||
 |
2016 United States | |
 |
2017 Slovakia | |
Vaakanainen first represented Finland at the 2015 World U-17 Hockey Challenge where Finland finished 5th. He won the gold medal at the 2016 IIHF World U18 Championships and he then won the silver medal the year after in 2017 at the same tournament.
Personal life
He was born in Joensuu, but grew up in Jyväskylä. His father Harri Vaakanainen played ice hockey in the Finnish 2. Divisioona, which is the fourth highest level in Finland.[6]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2014–15 | Espoo Blues | Jr. A | 30 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 34 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2015–16 | Espoo Blues | Jr. A | 18 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2015–16 | Espoo Blues | Liiga | 25 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | JYP Jyväskylä | Jr. A | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | JYP Jyväskylä | Liiga | 41 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 12 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 2016–17 | JYP-Akatemia | Mestis | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | SaiPa | Liiga | 43 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 24 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Liiga totals | 109 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 44 | 23 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Finland | U17 | 5th | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 2016 | Finland | U17 | 7th | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | |
| 2016 | Finland | WJC18 | 
|
7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | |
| 2016 | Finland | IH18 | 6th | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 2017 | Finland | WJC18 | 
|
5 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 | |
| 2017 | Finland | WJC | 9th | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2018 | Finland | WJC | 6th | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Junior totals | 38 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 24 | ||||
References
- ^ "JYP recruit hometown prospect Vaakanainen" (in Finnish). JYP Jyväskylä. 28 April 2016. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Tilastot – #13 Vaakanainen, Urho". Liiga. 16 May 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Urho Vaakanainen to SaiPa" (in Finnish). SaiPa. 5 May 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Bruins select Urho Vaakanainen with 18th overall pick". NESN. 23 June 2017. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Bruins Sign Urho Vaakanainen To 3-Year Entry-Level Contract". NHL.com. 13 June 2018. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- ^ "Harri Vaakanainen player profile". eliteprospects.com. 3 April 2017. Retrieved 3 April 2017.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help)
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from Eliteprospects.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
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