Antti Suomela

Last updated

Antti Suomela
Born (1994-03-17) 17 March 1994 (age 31)
Espoo, Finland
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 172 lb (78 kg; 12 st 4 lb)
Position Forward
Shoots Left
NL team
Former teams
Lausanne HC
Espoo Blues
JYP
San Jose Sharks
HIFK
IK Oskarshamn
National teamFlag of Finland.svg  Finland
NHL draft Undrafted
Playing career 2015present

Antti Suomela (born 17 March 1994) is a Finnish professional ice hockey forward for Lausanne HC of the National League (NL).

Contents

Playing career

Suomela made his Liiga debut playing with Espoo Blues during the 2015–16 Liiga season. [1]

He won the Veli-Pekka Ketola trophy for the most points scored during the regular season, posting 21 goals and 60 points in 59 games in the 2017–18 Liiga season with JYP Jyväskylä. [2] He also won the 2017–18 Champions Hockey League with JYP Jyväskylä.

Gaining NHL interest, Suomela agreed to a one-year, entry-level contract with the San Jose Sharks on 6 June 2018. [3] After attending his first NHL training camp with the Sharks, Suomela made the opening night roster for the 2018–19 season. Suomela made his NHL a debut on 3 October, [4] and recorded his first NHL point in a 3–2 win over the Los Angeles Kings on 5 October 2018. [5]

He was re-signed as a restricted free agent by the Sharks to a one-year, two-way contract on 11 July 2019. [6]

Suomela continued his tenure within the Sharks organization by signing a one-year, two-way contract on 7 October 2020. [7] On 9 October, having remained in Finland due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Suomela was loaned by the Sharks to return to competitive hockey by joining Finnish top flight Liiga club, HIFK, on loan until the commencement of the delayed 2020–21 NHL season. [8] In 10 appearances with HIFK, Suomela added 2 goals and 5 points before returning to the Sharks organization. He was dealt by the Sharks at the trade deadline to the Toronto Maple Leafs on 12 April 2021 in exchange for Alexander Barabanov. [9]

With his contract concluded with the Maple Leafs, Suomela remained within the organization signing a one-year AHL contract with the Toronto Marlies on 15 June 2021. [10]

Returning to Europe as a free agent for the 2022–23 season, Suomela signed a one-year contract in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) with IK Oskarshamn on 12 May 2022. [11] Rediscovering his offensive touch, Suomela quickly transitioned into Oskarshamn's top scoring threat and in 51 regular season games he finished top in the SHL in scoring with 37 goals and 66 points. He was awarded the Håkan Loob Trophy and the Guldhjälmen as the league MVP. He made three post-season appearances with Oskarshamn, however was unable to propel the club to the playoffs in losing in three games to Luleå HF in the Eighth finals.

On 13 March 2023, Suomela as a pending free agent opted to leave the SHL after just one season in signing a lucrative two-year contract with Swiss club, Lausanne HC of the National League (NL). [12]

Career statistics

Bold indicates led league

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season TeamLeagueGP G A Pts PIM GPGAPtsPIM
2010–11 Kiekko-Espoo FIN U18 Q30112
2010–11Kiekko-EspooFIN.2 U18176390
2011–12BluesFIN U18283912141241516
2011–12Blues IIFIN U18 Q10311142
2011–12Blues IIFIN.2 U1855380
2012–13Blues Jr. A 17279620000
2012–13Blues IIJr. B1064108
2013–14BluesJr. A4011172836111566
2014–15BluesJr. A4427386512964102
2015–16BluesJr. A657122938118
2015–16 Blues Liiga 5213132620
2016–17 JYP Liiga5822234537154260
2017–18 JYPLiiga59213960661230
2018–19 San Jose Sharks NHL 273584
2018–19 San Jose Barracuda AHL 47614201420110
2019–20 San Jose BarracudaAHL145496
2019–20 San Jose SharksNHL201674
2020–21 HIFK Liiga102354
2020–21 San Jose BarracudaAHL101562
2020–21 San Jose SharksNHL40000
2020–21 Toronto Marlies AHL70220
2021–22 Toronto MarliesAHL4814122610
2022–23 IK Oskarshamn SHL 513729664532462
2023–24 Lausanne HC NL 52122941101856110
2024–25 Lausanne HCNL4715254014Ongoing
Liiga totals179587813667215490
NHL totals51411158
SHL totals513729664532462
NL totals99275481241856110

International

YearTeamEventResultGPGAPtsPIM
2018 Finland WC 5th41010
2023 Finland WC 7th51342
Senior totals92352

Awards and honours

AwardYear
Liiga
Veli-Pekka Ketola trophy 2018 [2]
Champions Hockey League
Champion 2017–18
SHL
Håkan Loob Trophy 2023
Guldhjälmen 2023

References

  1. "Antti Suomela hockey statistics and profile". hockeydb.com. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Tässä ovat runkosarjan parhaat 2017–18 – katso palkintojen voittajat" (in Finnish). Liiga.fi. 18 March 2018.
  3. "Sharks sign center Antti Suomela". San Jose Sharks. 6 June 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  4. Pashelka, Curtis (3 October 2018). "Sharks center fired up for NHL debut: "This has been my dream"". The Mercury News. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  5. Greenspan, Dan (6 October 2018). "Sharks get first win with Karlsson, defeat Kings in overtime". National Hockey League. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  6. "Sharks Re-Sign Forward Antti Suomela". National Hockey League. 11 July 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  7. "Sharks Issue Qualifying Offers, Sign Two Players". National Hockey League. 7 October 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  8. "Antti Suomela on loan to HIFK" (in Finnish). HIFK. 9 October 2020. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
  9. "Sharks Acquire Forward Alexander Barabanov from Toronto for Antti Suomela". National Hockey League. 12 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  10. "Marlies sign forwards Chyzowski and Suomela". Toronto Marlies. 15 June 2021. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  11. "Finnish center joins from AHL" (in Swedish). IK Oskarshamn. 12 May 2022. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  12. "Antti Suomela joins Lausanne HC" (in French). Lausanne HC. 13 March 2023. Retrieved 13 March 2023.