When the New York Rangers moved up during the 2019 NHL Draft Lottery, and landed in a position to draft Finnish winger Kaapo Kakko, the thought was that Kakko was going to immediately jump to the NHL and dominate right out of the gate. Unfortunately, Kakko’s first NHL season was one to be forgotten for both the Rangers and the 18-year-old winger, as Kakko spent most of last season looking overmatched, consistently a stride or two behind the play, hesitant and passive with the puck, and often getting outmuscled on and off the puck. It was not a stretch to say that Kakko was legitimately one of the worst players in the league last year by almost every significant statistical measure.
Kaapo Kakko is Living Up to the Hype
