Cult of Hockey prospect series 2025: #10, Atro Leppanen
26 years old, 6’0″, 180 lbs., signed a free agent
The Edmonton Oilers have made a bet on a veteran d-man, the kind that’s paid off nine times this century for other NHL teams.
The Oilers are hoping this same bet pays off with incoming d-man Atro Leppanen, 26.
I’ll suggest the Oilers have made an excellent bet here, even as somewhat similar bets haven’t worked out for the Oilers in the past.
I’m talking about bringing over from Europe a veteran d-man, 25 years of age or more, who has excelled in European competition, then hoping he’ll do the same in the NHL.
It’s a bet the Oilers have made many times in recent seasons, bringing veteran European d-men such as Anton Belov, Yohann Auvitu, Joel Persson, and Theodore Lennstrom. Not one of them stucj in the NHL. The one Euro vet they did brought in who did stick, Jan Hejda, made it in Columbus and Denver only after the Oilers quickly gave up on him. But Hejda shows this kind of older d-man can, in fact, make it in the NHL, even if he’s a late bloomer.
Hejda is one of nine late bloomers in this regard, d-men who who have taken the same path. That number includes Marek Zidlicky, Brian Rafalski, Frantisek Kaberle, Petter Nummelin, Lubomir Sekeras, Dick Tanstrom, Michal Kempny, Uvis Balinskis and Hejda. All were European players save for Rafalski, an American who went to Europe after playing U.S. college hockey.
As you can see, a few of these players had significant NHL careers, and some came over and played exceedingly well right away, namely Zidlicky, Rafalski and Sekeras, who was 31 when he made the jump.
As for Leppanen, his impressive season in Finland’s Elite League saw him put up 63 points in 60 games, the same high level of scoring as Zidlicky and Rafalski in their final season each in Europe, both of them also playing in the Finnish Elite League.
Given the success of the highest scoring d-men Zidlicky and Rafalski, and given that Leppanen scored at a similar rate as those two, and given that Leppanen is on a one-year ELC at $975,000, he represents an excellent bet for the Oilers.
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What kind of a player is Leppanen?
Dobber Hockey says the following: “A dynamic, late-blooming, left-shot depth defenseman who plays a high-risk, high-reward game style. He struggles defensively, but his offensive game is intriguing.”
Added James Connelly of Dobber Hockey: “Leppanen, 26 years old, has had one of the most interesting routes to North America. After spending his entire career in Finland, much in the second division of Finnish hockey, Leppanen made the jump to the LIIGA, where he quickly broke out and proved himself to be one of the most valuable pieces for his team. As a defenseman, Leppanen scored 21 goals and 63 points in 60 LIIGA games, which earned him a contract with the Edmonton Oilers.”
And Edmonton prospect Bruce Curlock said of him, “Leppänen is an average sized (6’0” and 183 pounds) left shot defenceman. Those body types on defence can have some troubles in the NHL. However, Leppänen is an offensive phenom. Leppänen led the Liiga in scoring this past season. Not just for defencemen. He led the entire league going 21-42-63 in 60 games. Everything about his offensive ability comes natural. He’s not a blazer as a skater, but he’s more than adequate. Where he really excels skating wise is with his lateral mobility. He changes directions without any loss of pace or balance. This is with and without the puck.
But Curlock added: “The area that will require focus is defence. Leppänen can be puck oriented and tends to rove around his defensive zone. He will need to learn to play a structured style of defence where he marks his man off the puck with discipline. In addition, his size will work against him.”
Reasonable expectation for 2025-26: Leppanen should impress. He’ll be a strong player in Bakersfield if he ends up there, but he’s got more puck-moving ability than Ty Emberson, Troy Stecher and, possibly, Brett Kulak. If he can get his defensive game in order, I can see him making the Oilers roster at some point in 2025-26. His offensive flair could be a valuable addition to the squad. It’ll take some guts to go with Leppanen, but he’s got the kind of skill that can make a difference for a team.
At the Cult of Hockey
Cult of Hockey prospect series 2025
Forwards: Maxim Berezkin (3rd), William Nicholl (8th), Roby Jarventie (11th), Viljami Marjala (12th), Connor Clattenburg (13th), Tommy Lafreniere (14th). David Lewandowski (15th)
Dmen: Paul Fischer (16th), Nikita Yevseyev (18th), Asher Barnett (19th)
Goalies: Nathaniel Day (17th), Eemil Vinni (20th)