Oliver Kapanen could play his first Olympic game against Sweden tomorrow

Michaël Petit
Oliver Kapanen could play his first Olympic game against Sweden tomorrow
Credit: Getty Images

Finland's first game at the Olympics was not a resounding success.

In fact, the game was mainly dominated by Slovakia's Juraj Slafkovsky, who scored three points (including two goals) in his team's 4-1 victory.

What caught the attention of Montreal fans about the Finnish team was the presence of Oliver Kapanen among the selected players.

However, the Montreal Canadiens player was not among the 13 forwards on the Finnish roster against Slovakia.

Looking at the game's outcome, it's safe to assume that Finland's coach will be looking to add a little more offense in the next game.

In any case, Joel Kiviranta, who was the 13th forward against the Slovaks, did not play a single second in that game.

This is where Kapanen could become interesting for the Finns. He could well play the first Olympic game of his young career tomorrow against Sweden.

This would be quite special for Kapanen for a number of reasons.

First, as I mentioned, it would be his first Olympic game at only 22 years old (on a very talented team, despite the absence of Aleksander Barkov).

However, what would also be very special for the Finn is that he was born in Sweden.

Okay, he doesn't have Swedish citizenship, and that's really just because his father was playing in Sweden when his mother gave birth to him, but still.

Kapanen could certainly bring an interesting offensive touch to the Finnish lineup, while also being responsible in all three zones.

He is tied for first among rookies in goals with 18.

The same cannot be said for Kiviranta, who has only two goals and five assists in 28 games this season with the Colorado Avalanche.

Kiviranta has never been known as an offensive player, and he brings his own brand of efficiency in other areas. But Kapanen is certainly not one-dimensional and could very well play a more defensive role, as well as a more offensive one.

We can see that he has good offensive instincts, which pay off when he is paired with talented players (Ivan Demidov).

That's good news, because Finland has several very talented players.

Honestly, I don't see why Finland would keep Kiviranta as their 13th forward if they're not going to play him. Especially when a young, talented, and versatile player (like Kapanen) could very well take that spot.

Let's see what Finland's lineup will look like tomorrow for their game against Sweden.


Overtime

– Good news, Gillier is not injured.

– Hamilton would certainly be aninteresting fit in Toronto, but can the Leafs take on his hefty contract?

– What a beautiful moment. Nikola Topić got an assist on his first career NBA appearance after beating cancer.

–Well.

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