Head Coach Mike Sullivan Comments On The Penguins Newest Player

Published December 2, 2023 at 4:49 PM
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The Penguins called up a forward earlier today and he is expected to make his debut later tonight.

Penguins Call Up Koppanen



Earlier today, the Pittsburgh Penguins decided to call up Finnish forward Joona Koppanen to play him tonight versus the rival Philadelphia Flyers.




Koppanen is a 6'5" Finnish center in the first year of a two-year contract. While he is not known for scoring in bunches, he is quite serviceable and has the tools to be an everyday NHLer.

Mike Sullivan Comments On Koppanen's Game



Since this move was made earlier today, head coach Mike Sullivan left Koppanen with some high praise:


"He obviously brings a lot of size. He's a real mobile guy for his size. He checks well. He can help us on the penalty kill. There are a number of areas that we could plug Kopy in the lineup and he could help us immediately." - Mike Sullivan on Joona Koppanen

Koppanen also spoke on what he could bring to the Penguins ahead of his debut:


"Of course, I'm really excited to be here. I think things have been going really good for me lately... I'm trying to be a reliable guy on defense and try to take faceoffs and work on the PK." - Joona Koppanen on his game

If Koppanen can deliver on this he could emerge as a full-time NHLer for the Penguins and could be the type of player they use to shut down other teams' top players. He will wear the #15 tonight versus the Flyers and will play alongside Jansen Harkins and Jeff Carter.
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December 2   |   61 answers
Head Coach Mike Sullivan Comments On The Penguins Newest Player

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