Oliwer Kaski

Oliwer Kaski
Born	(1995-09-04) 4 September 1995 (age 28) Pori, Finland
Height	6 ft 3 in (191 cm)
Weight	187 lb (85 kg; 13 st 5 lb)
Position	Defence
Shoots	Right
SHL team Former teams	HV71 HIFK Lahti Pelicans Grand Rapids Griffins Charlotte Checkers Avangard Omsk HC Lugano
National team	Finland
NHL draft	Undrafted
Playing career	2016–present

Oliwer Kaski (born 4 September 1995) is a Finnish professional ice hockey defenceman who currently plays for HV71 of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL). Prior to turning professional, Kaski became the first Finnish-born player to play for the Western Michigan Broncos. His father Olli was also a professional ice hockey player for fifteen years, eleven of them with the Liiga's Ässät. ^[1] He has been part of the Detroit Red Wings and Carolina Hurricanes organizations.

Playing career

Kaski played for Western Michigan University for two seasons, becoming the first player born in Finland to play for Western Michigan. ^{[2] [3]} In November 2016, his sophomore year at Western Michigan, Kaski signed with HIFK of the Finnish Elite League (Liiga). ^[3] After playing parts of two seasons with HIFK, Kaski signed with the Lahti Pelicans in April 2018. ^[4]

During the 2018–19 season, Kaski had a breakout year. He recorded 19 goals and 32 assists in 59 games, leading the Pelicans in scoring. Kaski was awarded the Lasse Oksanen trophy as the league's best player.

On 28 May 2019, Kaski signed as an undrafted free agent to a one-year, entry-level contract with the Detroit Red Wings. ^[5]

After attending the Red Wings training camp, Kaski was assigned to begin the 2019–20 season with AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins. In his first North American professional season, Kaski contributed with 2 goals and 5 points through 19 games before on 12 December 2019, Kaski was traded by the Red Wings to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Kyle Wood. ^[6] Kaski found his scoring touch with AHL affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers, registering 11 goals in just 35 games from the blueline.

As an impending restricted free agent with the Hurricanes, Kaski opted to leave North America in agreeing to a one-year contract with Russian club, Avangard Omsk of the KHL on 18 June 2020. ^[7]

In March 2022, Kaski left Avangard Omsk during playoffs due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. ^{[8] [9]}

As a free agent, Kaski moved to Switzerland in the off-season, signing a two-year contract with Swiss club, HC Lugano of the National League (NL) on 25 May 2022. ^[10] In the 2022–23 season, Kaski struggled to adapt with Lugano, registering just 4 assists through 20 games. On 13 December 2022, Kaski opted to leave Switzerland to immediately join HV71 of the SHL on a two-year deal. ^[11]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2013–14	Ässät	Jr. A		37	10	7	17	10		7	1	1	2	0
2014–15	Ässät	Jr. A		48	10	27	37	12		4	0	1	1	0
2015–16	Western Michigan University	NCHC		31	4	8	12	4		—	—	—	—	—
2016–17	Western Michigan University	NCHC		1	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2016–17	HIFK	Liiga		36	2	4	6	0		12	1	1	2	0
2016–17	HIFK	Jr. A		3	3	2	5	2		—	—	—	—	—
2016–17	Kiekko-Vantaa	Mestis		3	0	1	1	2		—	—	—	—	—
2017–18	HIFK	Liiga		49	9	7	16	10		13	3	4	7	0
2018–19	Lahti Pelicans	Liiga		59	19	32	51	10		6	2	2	4	0
2019–20	Grand Rapids Griffins	AHL		19	2	3	5	12		—	—	—	—	—
2019–20	Charlotte Checkers	AHL		35	11	9	20	2		—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	Avangard Omsk	KHL		58	13	21	34	14		24	3	7	10	8
2021–22	Avangard Omsk	KHL		47	13	20	33	12		2	0	1	1	0
2022–23	HC Lugano	NL		20	0	4	4	2		—	—	—	—	—
2022–23	HV71	SHL		20	4	6	10	0		—	—	—	—	—
2023–24	HV71	SHL		39	8	12	20	4		—	—	—	—	—
Liiga totals				144	30	43	73	20		31	6	7	13	0
KHL totals				105	26	41	67	26		26	3	8	11	8

Medal record
Representing   Finland
Ice hockey
World Championships
	2019 Slovakia
	2021 Latvia

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2019	Finland	WC			10	0	2	2	4
2021	Finland	WC			10	0	3	3	2
2024	Finland	WC	8th		8	0	5	5	0
Senior totals					28	0	10	10	6

Awards and honours

Award	Year
Liiga
Juha Rantasila Trophy	2019
Lasse Oksanen Trophy	2019	[12]
KHL
Gagarin Cup (Avangard Omsk)	2021	[13]

References

1. "Leijonien uuden tähtipelaajan ura alkoi hankalasti ja välillä päätä silittivät vain isä ja äiti: " Se oli erittäin hankala tilanne, kun en voinut sanoa yhtään mitään"". hs.fi (in Finnish). 11 February 2019. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
2. "2015-16 WMU HOCKEY RECORD BOOK" (PDF). nmnathletics.com. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
3. "Oliwer Kaski Signs With HIFK". wmubroncos.com. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
4. Kauppinen, Juuso (9 April 2018). "Oliwer Kaski: "Lahdesta oli kova kiinnostus minua kohtaan"" (in Finnish). Liiga.fi. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
5. "Red Wings add free agent defenseman Oliwer Kaski". Detroit Red Wings . 28 May 2019. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
6. Kujawa, Kyle (12 December 2019). "Red Wings acquire defenseman Kyle Wood from Carolina". NHL.com. Retrieved 12 December 2019.
7. "Avangard sign World Champion Oliwer Kaski" (in Russian). Avangard Omsk. 18 June 2020. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
8. "Suomalaiskiekkoilijoiden joukkopako KHL:stä jatkuu – lähde: Pokka ja Kaski jättävät seuransa, myös Tuohimaa pois Venäjältä". Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). 5 March 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
9. "Ville Pokka and Oliwer Kaski leave Avangard". Avangard Omsk. 5 March 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
10. "Oliwer Kaski signs with Lugano" (in Italian). HC Lugano. 25 May 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
11. "Finnish national team defender Oliwer Kaski signs for HV71" (in Swedish). HV71. 13 December 2022. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
12. "The rise of Oliwer Kaski; from unknown rookie to Lasse Oksanen Trophy" (in Finnish). iltalehti.fi. 2019-03-20. Retrieved 2019-03-20.
13. "Avangard is crowned 2021 Gagarin Cup Champions" (in Russian). Kontinental Hockey League. 29 April 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2021.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  Eurohockey.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database