Leevi Meriläinen

Leevi Meriläinen (born 13 August 2002) is a Finnish ice hockey goaltender of the Allen Americans, the ECHL affiliate of the National Hockey League (NHL)'s Ottawa Senators. Meriläinen previously played with the Oulun Kärpät of the top-tier Finnish Liiga and major junior hockey with the Ontario Hockey League (OHL)'s Kingston Frontenacs. He was selected 71st overall in the third round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft by Ottawa. He made his North American professional debut with Ottawa in April 2023.

Leevi Meriläinen
Born (2002-08-13) 13 August 2002
Oulu, Finland
Height 6 ft 02 in (188 cm)
Weight 178 lb (81 kg; 12 st 10 lb)
Position Goaltender
Catches Left
NHL team (P)
Cur. team		 Ottawa Senators
Allen Americans (ECHL)
NHL Draft 71st overall, 2020
Ottawa Senators
Playing career 2023–present

Playing career

Finland and junior

Meriläinen joined Oulun Kärpät of Finland's top-tier Liiga as a young player, rising quickly within the team's development ranks. He was with Kärpät's Under-20 team playing in 22 games and registering .934 save percentage in the 2020–21 season in Finland.[1] Following his season in Finland, he was selected by the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL) 71st overall in the third round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.[2] He was named a Second Team All-Star in his junior league, but was told by Kärpät that they intended to seek out a more veteran presence and that Meriläinen would play in the second tier Finnish league.[2] On 14 June 2021, Meriläinen signed a three-year entry level contract with Ottawa.[3]

The Senators asked Meriläinen if he would join the Ontario Hockey League (OHL)'s Kingston Frontenacs for one season. The Frontenacs had selected Meriläinen in the Canadian Hockey League's Import Draft. He agreed and joined the Frontenacs for the 2021–22 OHL season. He experienced mixed results with the Frontenacs becoming one of the league leaders in wins and saves but posting a less than desirable sub-.900 save percentage and a 3.29 goals against average.[2][4] Following the conclusion of the OHL season, Meriläinen returned to Finland.[1] He joined Team Finland for the 2020 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.[5] Meriläinen began the tournament as Finland's starting goalie, but was replaced by Juha Jatkola for the semi-final versus Sweden and final game versus Canada.[6][7] Team Finland lost to Canada in the final game and took silver in the tournament.[7]

During the 2022–23 Liiga season, Meriläinen rejoined Oulun Kärpät and established himself as the starter, having a terrific year with the team. He posted a 2.02 goals against average and a .918 save percentage while setting the league record for most shutouts by a rookie with eight.[4] However, he was injured towards the end of the season and missed the playoffs where his team was eliminated.[8]

Ottawa Senators

Following the conclusion of Oulun Kärpät's season, Meriläinen returned to North America to join Ottawa's American Hockey League affiliate, the Belleville Senators. He played his first game on 2 April 2023 with Belleville against the Toronto Marlies, posting a 41-save shutout.[4][9] Following the game he was recalled by Ottawa after goaltender Mads Søgaard fell ill.[8] He played in his first NHL game on 4 April 2023 against the Carolina Hurricanes, posting 34 saves in a 3–2 overtime loss.[10] His play was good enough to earn another start against the Florida Panthers on 6 April. However, neither he nor his replacement in net, Søgaard, played well and Ottawa lost the game 7–2 to the Panthers and were officially eliminated from the playoffs.[11] On 7 April Meriläinen, along with Ridly Greig, was sent back to Belleville.[12]

Meriläinen was invited to Ottawa's training camp in 2023. However, he did not make the team and was assigned to Ottawa's ECHL affiliate, the Allen Americans, to start the 2023–24 season.[13]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP W L OT MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2019–20 Oulun Kärpät Jr. A 16 — — — — — — — .908 — — — — — — — —
2020–21 Oulun Kärpät Jr. A 22 — — — — — — — .934 5 — — — — — 2.60 .900
2021–22 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 53 31 16 5 3081 169 2 3.29 .891 11 5 5 635 39 0 3.69 .888
2022–23 Oulun Kärpät Liiga 42 18 13 7 2228 76 8 2.02 .918 — — — — — — — —
2022–23 Belleville Senators AHL 4 3 0 0 204 7 1 2.06 .933 — — — — — — — —
2022–23 Ottawa Senators NHL 2 0 1 1 86 6 0 4.23 .878 — — — — — — — —
NHL totals 2 0 1 1 86 6 0 4.23 .878 — — — — — — — —

References
  1. "Leevi Meriläinen siirtyy vuodeksi Kanadan junorisarjaan" [Leevi Meriläinen moves to Canadian junior league for one year] (in Finnish). Oulun Kärpät. 13 August 2021. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  2. Wheeler, Scott (24 February 2022). "Senators prospect Leevi Meriläinen is finding himself and his game in Kingston — with help from Ottawa". The Athletic. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  3. "Senators sign goaltender Leevi Merilainen to entry-level contract". Ottawa Senators. 14 June 2021. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  4. Vanderlaan, Joel (4 April 2023). "Meriläinen flashes potential in AHL debut". Belleville Senators. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  5. "Leevi Meriläinen set to represent Finland at 2022 WJC". Kingston Frontenacs. 9 August 2022. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  6. Ellis, Steven (19 August 2022). "Finland to Play for Gold at 2022 World Junior Championship". The Hockey News. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  7. Sandor, Steven (20 August 2022). "Canada defeats Finland in OT thriller for gold at world juniors in Edmonton". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  8. Garrioch, Bruce (2 April 2023). "The Ottawa Senators call on prospect goalie Leevi Merilainen with Sogaard sick". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  9. Spitters, Josh (2 April 2023). "New goaltender outstanding in Sens win over Marlies". Quinte News. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  10. "Merilainen makes 34 saves in NHL debut, but Senators fall to Hurricanes in OT". Sportsnet. Associated Press. 4 April 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  11. Garrioch, Bruce (6 April 2023). "Senators officially eliminated from playoff picture with ugly 7-2 loss to Panthers". Edmonton Journal. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  12. "Around the NHL: Luke Hughes to join Devils; Wild get Kaprizov back but lose Eriksson Ek". Sportsnet. 7 April 2023. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  13. "Belleville Senators issue preseason roster update". Belleville Senators. 10 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
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