Future Watch: Aleksi Saarela Rookie Hockey Cards, Panthers – Aleksi Saarela was drafted 89th overall by the New York Rangers in the 2015 NHL Draft. Since then he’s moved around from Carolina to Florida and has performed well along the way. Let’s look at that.
The versatile forward played in a lot of different levels in Liiga. At the highest level, he had 42 goals and 77 points in 166 games. Averaging just under a half a point-per-game, that’s decent.
In international play, he got a silver medal in the U18s in 2014-15. He had five goals and nine points in nine games. In 2015-16, he won a gold medal in the U20 World Junior Championship. In that tournament, he had four goals and seven points in seven games.
Then he came over to North America. In 2017-18, his first season with the Charlotte Checkers in the AHL, he had 25 goals and 43 points in 69 games. That’s a great start to his professional career in North America.
In 2018-19, he had 30 goals and 24 assists in 69 games. Then in the playoffs, he popped in 7 goals and 15 points in 17 games; he was then a Calder Cup Champion.
In 2019-20, he was dealt to Florida in October. He reported to Springfield, their AHL affiliate, scoring 31 points in 43 games, 12 of them were goals.
Collectors can find his Young Guns rookie card in the 2019-20 Upper Deck Series 2 Hockey. He has a Canvas Rookie in Series 1 as well. You can also find Saarela’s rookie cards in other current year Upper Deck products including Trilogy and SP Game-Used, just to name a few.
Here’s a look at his first NHL goal:
He did get called up to the Panthers and got in nine games. He had two goals and two assists until the league postponed play. This guy could be a gem, he’s worth your time.
Future Watch: Aleksi Saarela Rookie Hockey Cards, Panthers – Stats
| Scoring | Goals | Assists | Shots | Ice Time | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Age | Tm | Lg | GP | G | A | PTS | +/- | PIM | EV | PP | SH | GW | EV | PP | SH | S | S% | TSA | TOI | ATOI | FOW | FOL | FO% | BLK | HIT | TK | GV | Awards |
| 2019-20 | 23 | FLA | NHL | 9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 13.3 | 24 | 110 | 12:15 | 7 | 11 | 38.9 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 3 | |
| Career | 1 yr | NHL | 9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 13.3 | 24 | 110 | 12:15 | 7 | 11 | 38.9 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 3 | ||
Future Watch: Aleksi Saarela Rookie Hockey Cards, Panthers – More Resources
Future Watch: Aleksi Saarela Rookie Hockey Cards, Panthers – Image Gallery
For more from Russ Cohen, follow him on Twitter @sportsology.
Russ Cohen
is the author of several top-selling sports related books.
Baseball’s Best Rookies
Numbers Don’t Lie: Mets: The Biggest Numbers in Mets History
100 Ranger Greats: Superstars, Unsung Heroes and Colorful Characters
100 Things Rangers Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die
“Strike Three!” – A Player’s Journey through the Infamous Baseball Strike of 1994
The Winter Classic: The NHL’s Savior
The Philadelphia Flyers: Images of Sports
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