In 2023-24, former fourth overall pick Jesse Puljujarvi found his way to the Pittsburgh Penguins as a free agent. In 22 games, he scored three goals and finished with four points.
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Carrying a cap hit of $800k, there’s no guarantee that Puljujarvi gets and opportunity to play every game in 2024-25, especially since he is coming off a career low 9:11 of ice time a night.
However, through one game of the pre-season, he’s making a case for himself to see an expanded role in the Penguins lineup, recently recording a hat trick against the Buffalo Sabres.
Related: Jesse Puljujarvi Making His Mark as Training Camp Progresses
Since Puljujarvi is a trending player, and someone fans want to get know more beyond the 22 games they saw him last year, here’s five interesting about the Finnish forward.
Famously nicknamed the “Bison King”
When Puljujarvi relocated to Alberta to skate with the Edmonton Oilers, he became somewhat famous for taking a photo with a bison while walking with his dog in Elk Island National Park.
Like most things on social media, the iconic photo went viral. Soon, his teammates started to call him the “Bison King,” which led Puljujarvi to apply for the trademark.
Scored on His Second Shot in the NHL
Puljujarvi was 18 when he made his NHL debut on Oct. 12, 2016, against Edmonton’s rival, the Calgary Flames. In a blowout victory (7-4), he scored the Oilers’ sixth goal of the contest (unassisted) at 11:00 of the third period against Brian Elliott.
On his second shot of the night, Puljujarvi joined a list of Edmonton players who scored in their first NHL game, including Jordan Eberle, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and Kevin Lowe.
Dual Citizen of Finland and Sweden
Puljujarvi was born on May 7, 1998, in Alvkarleby, Sweden, to Finnish parents. By age four, his family went home to Finland where he began his hockey career.
Related: Top 5 Pittsburgh Penguins From Sweden
Although he is a dual citizen of both Sweden and Finland, Puljujarvi has only represented Finland in international competitions starting the U16 level. When he played at the World Juniors, he won a silver medal at the U18 level (2015) followed by a gold medal at the U18 and U20 tournaments in 2016.
Thanks to 17 points in seven games, Puljujarvi was named to the All-Star Team and won Best Forward and tournament MVP honors that year.
Forty Percent of Career Goals Assisted by Connor McDavid
After 356 games in the NHL, Puljujarvi has scored 54 goals to go with 61 assists for 118 points. Now, a seven-year veteran, he’s played for Edmonton (317 games), Carolina (17 games), and Pittsburgh (22 games).
Thus far, he’s tallied 51 goals with the Oilers and three with the Penguins. Interestingly, Pujujarvi’s old linemate, Connor McDavid is responsible for setting up 22 of those goals, which accounts for 40.7% of his career totals. For perspective, Sidney Crosby assisted on just 30.2% of Chris Kunitz’s goal totals.
Won a Liiga Championship Before a World Juniors Gold Medal
As mentioned earlier, Puljujarvi was a pheonomal junior player, who not only won on the international stage, but also in Finland. However, before he became a top prospect playing IIHF hockey, he won a Liiga championship with Kärpät in 2015-16.
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In the regular season, Piljujarvi scored 38 points in 50 games, tacking on another nine points in 10 playoff games. When Kärpät advanced to the Champions HL, he finished with two assists in 13 games.
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