| Spitzmauskc/Existing bio repair shop | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
29 April 2002 Lohja, Finland | ||
| Height | 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||
| Weight | 62 kg (137 lb; 9 st 11 lb) | ||
| Position | Defense | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| NSML team Former teams |
Kiekko-Espoo KJT | ||
| National team |
 Finland | ||
| Playing career | 2017–present | ||
Nelli Laitinen (born 29 April 2002) is a Finnish ice hockey player and member of the Finnish national team, currently playing in the Naisten Liiga (NSML) with Kiekko-Espoo. She has committed to play college ice hockey with the Minnesota Golden Gophers women's ice hockey program in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) conference of the NCAA Division I as an incoming freshman for the 2022–23 season.[1]
Playing career edit
Laitinen began playing ice hockey with the youth department of Lohjan Kisa-Veikot (LoKV) in her hometown of Lohja when she was five years old.[2]
Finland Selects U14[3]
Jan 2019[2]
attended Haukilahti Sports High School, where he attends the Blues U16 practices three times a week. In addition, she also attends evening practice with the Blues U20 once a week.
"In the boys, the game was really physical in the final stages. In women, I have been able to focus more and more on playing the puck. There had to be even more head up. Still practicing with boys is also really developing.
"The women's national team games are quite physical, so playing with the boys has been helpful.
March 2021[4]
did not sign with a SDHL team to remain eligible to play NCAA – March 2021
Jan 2022[5]
Feb 2022[6]
International play edit
As a junior player with the Finnish national under-18 team, she participated in the IIHF U18 Women's World Championships in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020.[7]
Laitinen made her senior national team debut at the 2018 4 Nations Cup in Saskatoon, Canada, where she contributed one assist in four games to Finland’s bronze medal victory.[8][9] Later that season, she represented Finland at the 2019 IIHF Women's World Championship.[10] At sixteen years old, she was the youngest player on the team and 29 years younger than Finland’s eldest player, Riikka Sallinen.[11] She recorded one assist in seven games as Finland won the first World Championship silver medal in team history.[12]
Laitinen won bronze medals while representing Finland at the 2021 IIHF Women's World Championship and in the women's ice hockey tournament at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.[13]
Career statistics edit
Regular season and playoffs edit
Naisten SM-sarja was rebranded as Naisten Liiga in 2017. Espoo Blues renamed as Kiekko-Espoo in 2019.
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2016–17 | HAKI | Naisten Mestis | 8 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2016–17 | HAKI | Naisten Suomi-sarja | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2016–17 | KJT (L) | Naisten SM-sarja | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2017–18 | HAKI U16 | U16 Mestis | 18 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2017–18 | Espoo Blues | Naisten Liiga | 11 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | ||
| 2017–18 | KJT (L) | Naisten Liiga | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| 2018–19 | Espoo Blues | Naisten Liiga | 27 | 12 | 27 | 39 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2019–20 | Kiekko-Espoo | Naisten Liiga | 28 | 7 | 24 | 31 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 14 | 6 | ||
| 2020–21 | Kiekko-Espoo | Naisten Liiga | 24 | 13 | 24 | 37 | 20 | 10 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 6 | ||
| Naisten Liiga totals | 94 | 34 | 76 | 110 | 38 | 32 | 8 | 23 | 31 | 14 | ||||
Note: Postseason results for the 2016–17 season are from the qualification series (Finnish: Karsintasarja) rather than the playoffs and are not calculated with playoff totals.
International edit
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Finland U18 | WW18 | 5th | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2018 | Finland U18 | WW18 | 5th | 5 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2019 | Finland U18 | WW18 | 
|
6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 3 | |
| 2019 | Finland | WW | 
|
7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 2020 | Finland U18 | WW18 | 4th | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2021 | Finland | WW |
|
7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2022 | Finland | OG |
|
7 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 4 | |
| Junior totals | 22 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 10 | ||||
| Senior totals | 21 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 10 | ||||
Sources: Finnish Ice Hockey Association,[14] Elite Prospects[15]
Honors and achievements edit
| Award | Year |
|---|---|
| Naisten Liiga | |
| All-Star First Team | 2019, 2020, 2021 |
| Päivi Halonen Award (Best Defenseman) | 2020, 2021 |
| U18 Student Athlete of the Year | 2020 |
| Player of the Month | October 2020 |
| Aurora Borealis Cup Champion | 2019, 2021 |
| International | |
| WW18 Top-3 Player on Team | 2018, 2019, 2020 |
| WW18 All-Star Team | 2019 |
| WW18 Bronze Medal | 2019 |
| WW18 Best Defenseman | 2020 |
| World Championship Silver Medal | 2019 |
| World Championship Bronze Medal | 2021 |
| Olympic Bronze Medal | 2022 |
Personal life edit
Laitinen’s older brother, Villi (born 1999), plays ice hockey professionally as a defenseman with Lukko in the Finnish Liiga.
At a pre-Olympic press conference in January 2022, Laitinen confirmed that she was in a relationship with NHL player Jesperi Kotkaniemi.[19]
References edit
- ^ "Gophers Add Laitinen to 2022-23 Signing Class". University of Minnesota Athletics. 17 January 2022. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b Koivunen, Tommi (29 January 2019). "Nelli Laitinen, 16, on Suomen jääkiekon suurlupaus – pelaa Naisleijonissa ja harjoittelee poikien kanssa: "Hän on aivan poikkeuksellinen pelaaja"" [Nelli Laitinen, 16, is the great promise of Finnish hockey – she plays on Naisleijonat and trains with boys: "She is an absolutely exceptional player"]. Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ "Finland Selects U14 - 2016 Playoffs - Roster - #37 - Nelli Laitinen - D". World Hockey Group. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ Laakso, Mika (20 March 2021). "Kiekko-Espoon Nelli Laitinen luottaa omaan joukkueeseen – "Tiedämme mitä nämä pelit vaativat pelaajilta"" [Kiekko-Espoo's Nelli Laitinen trusts in her team - "We know what these games require from players"]. Jatkoaika.com (in Finnish). Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ Koivunen, Tommi (24 January 2022). "Nelli Laitinen, 19, menee kohti maailman huippua – Pasi Mustonen ylistää: "Ei tule vastaavaa mieleen"" [Nelli Laitinen, 19, is heading to the top of the world – Pasi Mustonen praises: "No comparable player comes to mind"]. Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ Henelius, Inka (3 February 2022). "Sitkeä ja hyvin kasvatettu, kuvailee valmentaja Nelli Laitista – nyt puolustajalla on edessä unelmien olympiaturnaus ja uusi elämä Pohjois-Amerikassa" [Nelli Laitinen described by head coach, tenacious and accomplished – now the defender is facing the Olympic tournament of her dreams and a new life in North America]. Yle (in Finnish). Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ Podnieks, Andrew; Nordmark, Birger, eds. (2019). "Active Skaters, Women". IIHF Guide & Record Book 2020. Toronto: Moydart. p. 653. ISBN 9780986796470.
- ^ Viljanen, Markus (29 October 2018). "Naisleijonat vahvalla joukkueella 4 Nations Cupiin - mukana myös useampi 2000-luvulla syntynyt lupaus" [Naisleijonat has a strong team for the 4 Nations Cup – included several promising [players] born in the 21st century]. Jatkoaika.com (in Finnish). Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ "2018 4 Nations Cup – Player Stats – Players (Points)". Hockey Canada. 10 November 2018. Archived from the original on 31 January 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ "Naisleijonien MM-joukkue yhtä vaille valmis – Kisojen alkuun kymmenen päivää" [Naisleijonat World Championship team is ready – Ten days to the start of the tournament]. leijonat.fi. Finnish Ice Hockey Association. 25 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ Martela, Ille (5 April 2019). "16-vuotias Nelli Laitinen on ottanut paikkansa Naisleijonissa" [16-year-old Nelli Laitinen has taken her place with the Naisleijonat]. Jatkoaika.com (in Finnish). Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ "2019 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's World Championship – Team Roster: FIN - Finland" (PDF). stats.iihf.com. International Ice Hockey Federation. 5 April 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Beijing 2022 – Althetes: Nelli LAITINEN, Ice Hockey". Olympics.com. Archived from the original on 13 March 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
- ^ "Pelaajakortti: Nelli Laitinen". leijonat.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Ice Hockey Association. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Player Profile: Nelli Laitinen". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Suomen Jääkiekkoliitto; Liiga. Aaltonen, Juha (ed.). Jääkiekkokirja 2019–2020 (PDF) (in Finnish). Helsinki: Uusi Suomi/Kiekkolehti. p. 554. ISSN 0784-3321. OCLC 476321083. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ Suomen Jääkiekkoliitto; Jääkiekkon SM-liiga Oy (2020). Aaltonen, Juha (ed.). Jääkiekkokirja 2021: Suomen Jääkiekkoliiton ja Liiga Kausijulkaisu 2020–2021 (PDF) (in Finnish). Helsinki: Uusi Suomi/Kiekkolehti. p. 528. ISSN 0784-3321. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
- ^ Mennander, Pasi (15 March 2021). "Naisten Liigan kauden 2020–21 palkitut pelaajat ja tähtikentät". leijonat.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Ice Hockey Association. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
- ^ Palojärvi, Otto (25 January 2022). "Naisleijonien suurlupaus pahoillaan NHL-poikaystävänsä puolesta". Sportti.com (in Finnish). Retrieved 28 March 2022.