He’s a long shot and that’s OK: Hurricanes’ Juha Jaaska has been ‘waiting for the chance’
Every NHL training camp has a long shot, someone looking to make a lasting impression, someone dreaming the dream of making the roster.
It could be a seventh-round draft pick, trying to beat the odds. Or an 18-year-old, seeking to show he’s NHL ready. Or an aging veteran, past his prime but believing he still has value.
Or someone like the Carolina Hurricanes’ Juha Jaaska.
Jaaska, 26, was born in Helsinki, Finland, and has played all of his hockey in Finland. The forward was not drafted by any NHL team. Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour knew virtually nothing about him until seeing him on the ice at camp.
“It’s always been my dream, of course, to play in the NHL,” Jaaska said in an N&O interview Tuesday. “I have been waiting for the chance, waiting for someone to pick me up. I want to play with the best and see how far I can go with it.”
Jaaska scored his first goal against NHL competition Saturday in the Canes’ preseason road game at Florida. He forced a Panthers turnover in the neutral zone and was off on a breakaway, beating goalie Chris Driedger high to the glove side with three seconds left in the first period.
Jaaska also had an assist on the Canes’ first goal of the night, by Jackson Blake, who did most of the work with a nice move and shot.
Jaaska again was in the lineup Wednesday as the Canes lost 6-4 to the Nashville Predators at the Lenovo Center. Felix Unger Sorum had a goal and two assists for the Canes, who raised nearly $300,000 for the hurricane relief effort with a turnout of 18,700 for the game.
Jaaska had about 16 minutes in ice time, including more than three minutes shorthanded as the Canes killed off all four Nashville power plays.
“He’s done fine,” Brind’Amour said this week of Jaaska. “He’s a hard worker. He’s the typical Finnish guy that we’ve had over the years. They play hard. I’m sure once he gets comfortable with how we do things, he’ll probably be pretty consistent at it.”
Jaaska, listed at 6 feet tall and weighing 196 pounds, has been competing in the SM-Liiga, Finland’s top hockey league. He has played the past seven seasons with HIFL Helsinki, finishing the 2023-24 season with 10 goals and 20 assists in 57 games — not numbers that leap off the page.
Jaaska was signed April 9 by former general manager Don Waddell, who said the forward “brings energy and intensity to every shift.” He agreed to a one-year entry-level contract which pays $775,000 at the NHL level or $82,500 at the AHL level, with a signing bonus of $75,000
“After last year, I was ready to come over there and see what my level is,” Jaaska said. “I like competing, battling, the speed of the game. I like the lifestyle of trying to make yourself better every day.”
Everything was new for him when he arrived in Raleigh last month — the city, the surroundings, the coaching staff, his teammates. And the size of the smaller North America rinks, which often calls for play in tighter spaces.
Jaaska said he has been staying with the Canes’ Jesperi Kotkaniemi. That solved one early logistical problem: the Finn could room with another Finn.
“I didn’t really have expectations. I was so open-minded to come here.” Jaaska said. “As I said, I wanted to see my level competing against the best in the world. Of course, I want to play in the NHL but the competition is so hard. I’ll try to do my best and see where it goes.”
The Canes’ Sebastian Aho, another of the Finnish guys, had not played in North America until coming to Carolina’s preseason camp in 2016. It was a big adjustment for him, he said, moving from the Liiga to the NHL.
“Obviously there’s a lot of new stuff, outside of hockey, as well,” Aho said Tuesday. “Hockey is a little different. It’s the smaller rink. It’s a different system. The skill level is higher and the pace of play is higher.
“It takes a little while to get comfortable. But at the end of the day, as long as you play well and make your mark on the ice, that goes a long way.”
As a long shot like Jaaska, that’s all you can hope for — the chance.
“It can be a long road but I’m ready for that,” Jaaska said.
This story was originally published October 2, 2024 at 10:00 AM.
