At first glance it’s extremely difficult to understand why Kristian Vesalainen fell outside the projected top 10 of this year’s NHL Draft class. He’s a large forward, standing at 6’4’’, and plays the game at a high skill level. However, some struggles at the World Juniors on a Finnish team in disarray, and a lacklustre showing for Frölunda in the SHL hurt his stock heading in.
His talent is still there, however, and his descent down the draft board could be to Montreal’s advantage. After all, their last Finnish winger who played for Frölunda worked out pretty well.