Oliver Kapanen #27 of Team Finland (Photo by Dale Preston/Getty Images)
The Montreal Canadiens are set to have an extremely competitive training camp, and there just may be a few surprises for fans to discover.
One of them is newly signed prospect, Oliver Kapanen, who lit up the Finnish Liga playoffs last spring and has been doing more of the same so far during the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) pre-season with Timra IK.
The former 64th overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft has been on a sharp upward trajectory since the start of the 2024 calendar. Both Timra and the Montreal Canadiens signed him to contracts this summer, meaning that he could play for either team, depending on how things go at training camp.
Timra head coach and former NHL All-Star, Olli Jokinen, spoke to RG to break down the organization’s plan with Kapanen this season.
“It’s going to be either Montreal or the Timra for Oliver, because of the agreement in his contract (European Out Clause)”, Jokinen said. “Here, we’ll be using him as a first line centre with power play and penalty kill time.”
With playing in the AHL with the Laval Rocket confirmed to be out of the question, there’s been a discussion as to whether keeping Kapanen in Montreal is the best course of action for his development.
The main issue is the Canadiens already have a significant number of NHL-caliber forwards on the roster, especially for their bottom-six. But Jokinen doesn’t see that as much of an issue for Kapanen:
Timra Planing Ahead
Kapanen excels in many facets that are valuable in an NHL bottom-six. He’s got great hockey sense and good skating mechanics, and he's an ace in the faceoff circle and can play special teams when needed.
It’s an attractive combination of skills for an NHL coach like Martin St-Louis to utilize, should they feel he’s ready for a full-time role.
And, for Jokinen and Timra, there’s already a plan in place in case Kapanen is able to steal a spot from a veteran player in the Canadiens’ bottom six.
“We have a plan in place in case Oliver doesn’t return to Timra,” Jokinen says. “We’ll likely have to look to make a move on our end to replace him. In my mind, he’s got a great opportunity to steal a spot at the Montreal Canadiens’ camp. He’s got an advantage that he’s already been training seriously for six weeks with us and playing six preseason games.”
Jokinen admitted that the organization has been planning for life without Kapanen from the moment he signed his three-year, entry-level contract with the Canadiens in July.
They believed he was close to NHL caliber after his impressive World Championship showing for Finland, and they seem even more convinced of his NHL future today.
“Ever since he signed with an organization like Montreal, we knew there was a possibility of him not coming back after training camp,” Jokinen says. “After watching him play so far, I think he could be one of the best forwards in the SHL this season. I’m counting on him stealing a spot at the Canadiens camp.”
Canadiens Training Camp Coming Up
Kapanen will stay in Sweden for another few days, skipping Rookie Camp, and will be making his way to Montreal next week for the Canadiens’ main training camp.
It’ll be a serious battle for one of the final spots in the lineup as veterans Christian Dvorak and Jake Evans seemingly have the final two center spots in the lineup locked down. And then there will be youngsters like Alex Barré-Boulet and Owen Beck also vying to surprise and steal a spot.
Needless to say, Kapanen will have to hit another gear to impress the Montreal Canadiens enough to keep him in Montreal, rather than send him back to Timra to be a top-line center in a top league.
But, in Jokinen’s mind, the odds of that happening could be higher than most believe.
Marco D'Amico is a beat reporter covering the Montreal Canadiens and the NHL Draft, while also being a recurring guest on TSN690 and BPM Sports. His work primarily on NHL CBA breakdowns and prospect analysis, all while covering the Montreal Canadiens on a day-to-day basis.
