The challenge this time is to do it without the Panthers forward Alexander Barkov and Montreal Canadiens forward Patrick Laine. Barkov, the Panthers captain who won the Stanley Cup with them the past two seasons, has been out this season with a knee injury suffered in the preseason. Laine is out after undergoing core muscle surgery in October.
“When it happened, we knew we were missing one of the best players in the world (in Barkov). It’s sport. It happens and the guys know it, and they’ve been in the same situation,” Finland general manager Jere Lehtinen said. “It’s huge, but we have these players there that can kind of help the team through the lineup.”
Not that the Finns lack firepower. Rantanen leads the Stars with 69 points (20 goals, 49 assists) this season, and Aho leads the Hurricanes with 57 points (20 goals, 37 assists). Heiskanen is third among NHL Finns with 46 points (seven goals, 39 assists) and Hintz follows with 44 points (15 goals, 29 assists).
However, this is where Finland’s greatest asset should manifest itself.
“Of course it’s hard to miss guys like Barkov and Laine, but for Finland it’s always about team play, system and playing together,” the Chicago Blackhawks forward said. Teuvo Teravainen said. “That’s the kind of way we have to play to win, so whoever we have in the game, they’re the ones who will do it for us. It’s a nice feeling to know that one of our greatest strengths is still how we work together.”
Finnish players have gained a lot of knowledge from past international tournaments. For the Stars and Panthers, who have four and two Olympic-bound Finnish players, respectively, there’s even more familiarity. Lindell and Heiskanen have formed the Stars’ best defensive pair in several seasons. Lundell and Luostarinen are usually teammates at Florida.
“It will be an advantage. It would be a fun team to coach, wouldn’t it, without a doubt. They have some pieces that have played together, so it will be up to the coaching staff to build on that a little bit,” Stars coach Glenn Gulutzan said. “These countries, Finland, Sweden, these players have known each other for a long time, played together, so they like to get together. Having a certain chemistry together is an advantage for them.”
Finland is feeling good heading into the Olympics. NHL players who couldn’t be there with the 2022 gold medal team watched with pride. Now they want to help bring home the gold.
“It’s a big thing in Finland. Hockey is the number one sport and people love to watch it, especially when the national team plays. It’s a whole country thing, I would say, everyone supports the team,” Rantanen said. “Doing something at the Olympics is the biggest stage where you can do something, so I hope we can play good matches and get good results.”
NHL.com Senior Editorial Director Shawn P. Roarke and independent correspondent George Richards contributed to this report.
