Oliwer Kaski
Born (1995-09-04) 4 September 1995
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]

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 — — — — —
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
Gold medal – first place2019 Slovakia
Silver medal – second place2021 Latvia

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2019 Finland WC 1st place, gold medalist(s) 10 0 2 2 4
2021 Finland WC 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 10 0 3 3 2
Senior totals 20 0 5 5 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. 1 2 "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.
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