Sweden has many back-up stars in the NHL, Finland only Miro Heiskanen – Jukka Jalonen’s theory: “We have a clear division where the big ones play defensively and the small ones offensively”

The Finnish hockey factory has produced talented NHL players at an impressive rate over the past ten years. It is still, almost exclusively, about talented strikers as Finland only has one back star in Miro Heiskanen.

At the same time that Finland’s defense machinery is coughing precariously, the Swedish defensemen have key roles in every other NHL team. It has made many people think about what Sweden does differently.

Finland’s national team captain Jukka Jalonen has no clear answer, but a lot of thoughts.

– You have to remember that we are quite a small country that annually manages to produce a decent number of NHL players, says Jalonen to Yle Urheilu.

In recent years, Sweden has roughly had twice as many NHL players as Finland. Even with that in mind, Finland’s back production pales in comparison to its neighbor to the west.

Jalonen thinks that Finland consolidates the playing roles of the defenders at too early an age.

– From Sweden comes offensive backs who are also big. With us, the distribution has been clearer: big backs are defensive and the small ones play offensively. The Swedes are doing a really good job in developing the offensive skills of their big backs, says Jalonen.

– If we have a large and slightly clumsy back at a certain age, we quickly decide that this will be a conventional back. Size has nothing to do with game understanding. I hope that even tall players will get more offensive support in the future. Overall, we need to learn to work better with slopes.

There is a lot and a lot of Miro Heiskanen in the Dallas Stars who single-handedly makes sure that the statistics for the younger Finnish defenders look okay. The 40 Finnish defensemen, who are reserved between 2016 and 2022, have been recorded for 287 points in the NHL.

Heiskanen has scored 162 points – and thus accounted for more than half of the blue-white point harvest.

The fact that Finland had many promising slopes that were reserved early in the summers of 2017 and 2019 probably contributed to them also getting the chance to show off. The majority have still not taken advantage of their chances.

Many point out that the FM league is not an optimal environment for defenders aiming for the NHL. Above all, not in comparison to the Swedish SHL with a higher tempo and more active game.

Former NHL defenseman Sami Salo, who has 878 regular season games under his belt, is now an assistant coach in TPS where he trains 16-year-old Aron Kiviharju, who has the potential to become a player of Heiskanen’s caliber.

– The gap between the FM league and the NHL has grown since my time. The skating is the biggest difference. The playing style is not optimal if the goal is to prepare for a move to North America, says Salo.

Salo was 24 years old when he took the step across the Atlantic and immediately managed to snag a regular spot in the Ottawa Senators’ defense.

– It pays to consider carefully if you are not completely sure that you are ready. You can only create a first impression once.

– As a back, it takes longer to adapt and you are under the magnifying glass all the time, even during training. You are in bad shape if you go too half-machine during a training session, says Salo.

He gets the approval of Jalonen.

– There are completely different demands on defenders than on strikers. There are only six running backs on the team, so you can’t bring in a running back just to see how he does.

– It is possible to have a twelfth striker who plays for five minutes, without it falling on it. Only a world-class defenseman like Miro Heiskanen can directly take the step from the FM league or the SHL to the NHL, says Jalonen.

Union captain Jalonen points to the realities when he analyzes the situation from the perspective of the league coaches.

– In the league clubs’ team building, the primary idea is not to produce players for the NHL’s needs. The main goal is to achieve success at home. Over 90 percent of the players never get the chance in the NHL, says Jalonen.

– Of course, the players must get the best conditions possible. It requires the right training in everyday life and playing active ice hockey. But it is each individual coach who ultimately decides what type of hockey the teams benefit from.

Jalonen also does not think that it is the league coaches, but rather the junior organizations, who need to think.

– The FM league does not prevent anyone from playing in the NHL. There is already a lot of work behind it when a player knocks on the league door at the age of 18–20. If the right things have not been done when the players are 8–18 years old, it is too late to catch the NHL train. It is the junior years that largely make the decision.

– Sweden is a special case regarding slopes. Relative to their size, they probably produce the most slopes in the world, even more than the North Americans. When it comes to offensive skills, they work on the right things in everyday life. We should also strive for that, says Jalonen.

The article is partly based on Tommi Seppälä’s article Miksi Suomi ei tuota kuippapuolustajia NHL:ään? Vertailu Ruotsiin sukta pahalta – Jukka Jaloselta terävä havainto isoista pakeista for Yle Urheilu.