With the offseason chugging along and the excitement of the NHL Entry Draft and free agency waning, hockey fans are left anxiously awaiting next season. Here at Last Word on Hockey, we have been exploring some different “bests” from teams during the dog days of summer. Best players by number for a few teams, top captains, best and worst sweaters, and top first-round draft picks are some of the select rankings our writers have been exploring. As an ode to the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, here for the Carolina Hurricanes, we are looking at the all-time starting lineups based on nationality.
A few parameters to this list to get us started. This will be a starting lineup so two wingers, one centre, two defencemen, and a goalie. The player must have played in the NHL with the Hurricanes (not looking at Hartford Whalers or prospects). The assessment comes from the players best performance with, and impact on, the Hurricanes, not over his career if he played with other teams. Today we start with a country that has somewhat become synonymous with Carolina. This is the all-time Hurricanes Finnish starting lineup.
Carolina Hurricanes All-Time Finnish Starting Lineup
The Hurricanes over the last few years especially have become synonymous with a strong Finnish contingency of players. This is headlined by none other than Sebastian Aho. But there have been a few notable Finns throughout the lineup since the team’s inception in 1997. Let’s see who made the starting lineup.
Tuomo Ruutu-LW – Sebastian Aho-C – Teuvo Teravainen-RW
Joni Pitkanen-LD – Jani Hakanpää-RD
Sebastian Aho
We will start off with a bang here with Sebastian Aho. Not only is Aho the top Finn in Hurricanes history, he is challenging Eric Staal for the top player in the team’s history. The team’s current first line centre and face of the franchise, Aho is an all-situations player with top level skill and a strong compete level. A shrewd second-round draft pick by then general manager Ron Francis, Aho has done nothing but exceed expectations since becoming a Hurricane.
Second in franchise history in points, goals, and assists after Eric Staal, you cannot overstate Aho’s work for this team. His clutch ability comes second to none as well as he leads the organization in game-winning goals, overtime goals, and shorthanded goals. In addition, his playoff points, assists, and goals are all franchise leaders. Sure, he has seen the playoffs more than Eric Staal and that can partially account for those totals. But you also could argue his impact on the team to make the playoffs consistently the last six years is almost as important as Rod Brind’Amour‘s behind the bench. It’s no surprise Aho leads the Finns for Carolina.
Tuomo Ruutu
With a handful of Hurricanes Finnish forwards that could land on this list, the next up is Tuomo Ruutu. Currently an assistant coach with the Florida Panthers who now is a Stanley Cup Champion, Ruutu came to Carolina in 2008 via trade with the Chicago Blackhawks. Andrew Ladd went the other way. Instantly he made an impact as he got off the plane, suited up for Carolina for a game that night, received stitches, and returned to the game.
Beyond Ruutu’s willingness to “lay it on the line,” he put up 90 goals and 126 assists with Carolina. Notably, he was part of the team that made the Eastern Conference Final in 2009 and stuck around until 2014. As Ruutu’s effectiveness was fading, Carolina traded him to the New Jersey Devils. However, his time in Carolina was certainly memorable. While his statistical effectiveness slowly wore off, his heart never did. And the Hurricanes fans continued to chant “Ruuuuuu” until the end.
Teuvo Teravainen
The last Hurricanes Finnish forward on this list is Teuvo Teravainen. While you could make a good argument that other Finns Jussi Jokinen or Sami Kapanen could be in the starting five over Ruutu or Teravainen, they take the edge due to a mix of performance, effectiveness, and impact on the team during both the lows and highs.
And this is why Teravainen picks up where Ruutu left off. Teravainen came to Carolina also from Chicago via a salary dump related trade in 2016. (He ironically re-signed with Chicago this summer). After a Stanley Cup championship as a rookie, Teravainen had the potential to be a top-six winger Carolina needed. Possessing a high hockey IQ with a calming presence on and off the ice, Teravainen was a big piece to helping Carolina return to the playoffs after a ten-year drought.
Spending much time with Aho at 5v5 and as penalty killing partners, Teravainen finished in the top ten for all time Hurricanes in points and the second Finn on that list after Aho. Teravainen was another all-situations player who let his play do the talking. His play seemed to have priced him out of Carolina this summer and his impact will be missed. But not forgotten.
Joni Pitkanen
As we move to the defence now, there are only a few Hurricanes Finnish players to populate this list. Sami Vatanen had a very brief appearance for Carolina in 2020 but only played in the Covid bubble playoffs. Ironically, another Finn Janne Kuokkanen went the other way in that trade. However, even if the list is small, Joni Pitkanen would likely see his name here.
Pitkanen came to Carolina in 2008 from the Edmonton Oilers in a move that divided fans as fan favourite Erik Cole went the other way. But Carolina was looking to get some puck moving help on the backend at the time and this was the deal that brought it. An offensive defenceman, Joni Pitkanen could move the puck extremely well. He had a good shot and the ability to put up points himself, but his playmaking really stood out. During his time with Carolina, he put up 140 points in 266 games. He finished ahead of other notable Hurricanes defencemen such as Brady Skjei, Joe Corvo, and Dougie Hamilton. Like Ruutu, Pitkanen was a big part of the team that made the Eastern Conference Final in 2009.
Unfortunately, Pitkanen’s career came to an end in 2013 when he raced back to touch the puck to get an icing, lost his footing, and went feet first into the boards. He shattered his heel and was never able to return to NHL. It was this play (along with some similar ones) that led the NHL to change from touch icing to the hybrid icing they use today.
Jani Hakanpää
Ok, so seeing Jani Hakanpää on this list likely seems like a surprise. And to be blunt, yeah, it is more of a lack of competition than anything else. Beyond the three Finns mentioned, Rasmus Rissanen, and Tommi Kivisto won’t quite make the cut. And Vatanen only played a handful of playoff games in Carolina. But nevertheless, we can focus on the positives he brought to Carolina during his short stint.
In a move to acquire some size and physicality, the Hurricanes traded Haydn Fleury to the Anaheim Ducks in 2021 for Hakanpää. At the time, Carolina had a number of decent defencemen but when using players like Fleury and Jake Bean they seemed to get pushed around a bit. At 6’6″, he certainly fit the size category. Almost purely a defensive defenceman, he came in and helped Carolina’s bottom defensive pairing. In 15 regular season games he had three points but none during the playoffs. But he played a shutdown role and provided the physicality sought. He wasn’t too much of a game changer and he moved on to the Dallas Stars in free agency after that season. But he did what he was brought in to do for Carolina.
The Carolina Hurricanes Finnish Goalie of the Bunch: Antti Raanta
“Father Finn” as he has come to be known around Carlolina rounds out our Finnish starting lineup in net. Again like Hakanpää, he did not have competition. But that does not negate what Raanta did while in Carolina. Signing as a free agent in 2021, Raanta came to Carolina at the same time Frederik Andersen arrived. The Hurricanes were going in a different direction in net from the previous year with Andersen as 1A and Raanta as 1B.
And largely, it worked very well. Together they won the William Jennings Trophy in 2021-22 for the league’s best goaltending tandem. From that season through 2022-23, Raanta posted back-to-back save percentages of .912 and .910, while having a 2.45 and 2.23 GAA, respectively. In 2022-23, he put up four shutouts which was in the top of the list for the league. With a smile almost always on his face, Raanta was a reliable and steady 1B option for Carolina. This ended with him earning a one-year deal last offseason.
Unfortunately, this past season was not so great for Raanta. Especially early. He seemed to struggle in net and couldn’t find the consistently needed to get it together. He would have flashes of his former self, but they would come and go. Overall, he ended with a .872 SV% and 2.99 GAA and finished the year in the AHL. Now a free agent, hopefully he will find a place in the NHL again. While it doesn’t seem like it will be Carolina, his impact on the team during his three seasons cannot be overlooked.
Main Photo Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports
