Konsta Helenius (#19) Shift by Shift: Finland vs Sweden IIHF World Championships Quarterfinals
I intended to upload this on YouTube and call it a day but the World Championships video provider doesn’t allow their content through the copyright filters. Instead, enjoy it here where there aren’t as wide ranging of restrictions, at least for now.
The game was an incredibly tight defensive affair with only a single goal at 5v5. Finland tied the game in the last minute with their goalie pulled.
A subtle but effective game from Konsta Helenius, to be expected from a draft year player playing in the World Championships but especially so in a defensive game on a team so outmatched by their competition (Sweden had Victor Hedman, Erik Karlsson and Rasmus Dahlin at the tournament among plenty of NHL forwards).
Of note is Helenius’ receiving good deployment in overtime but, unfortunately, he drew a penalty that resulted in their loss. During the game you can see his battling with Joel Eriksson-Ek and otherwise solid commitment to defense.
He drew a penalty in the neutral zone and had a couple of good passing and entry plays. Otherwise, I thought he looked a little tentative and/or nervous on some of his defensive zone switches and coverages but still looks defensively advanced, especially in his ability to compete in battles, for a player who only turned 18 this two weeks prior.
He had a couple of solid puck pickups and subtle plays in transition and was even featured on the first Powerplay.
Here is Finland’s boxscore from the game highlighting his respectable ice-time including more deployment than current NHLer Jesse Puljujarvi.