Topias Leinonen
Born (2004-01-25) 25 January 2004
Jyväskylä, Finland
Height 6 ft 5 in (196 cm)
Weight 234 lb (106 kg; 16 st 10 lb)
Position Goaltender
Catches Left
Liiga team JYP Jyväskylä
NHL Draft 41st overall, 2022
Buffalo Sabres
Playing career 2021present

Topias Leinonen (born 25 January 2004) is a Finnish professional ice hockey goaltender who currently plays with JYP Jyväskylä of the Finnish Liiga.[1] Leinonen was selected 41st overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2nd round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft.[2][3]

Playing career

After playing for Ilves in his youth, Leinonen moved to JYP's Under-16 program.[4] He played for the JYP Under-16 team in 2018-19, and the Under-18 team in 2019-20. After playing 15 for the Under-20 team in 2020-21, Leinonen played 21 games for the Under-20 team in the 2021-22 season and played 4 games in Liiga for the senior team.[5]

In 2021-22 he spent time on loan with KeuPa HT of Mestis.[6]

Going into the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, Leinonen was regarded as the top goaltending prospect[6] and was ranked as the top European goalie by NHL Central Scouting.[7] He was drafted 41st overall by the Buffalo Sabres, as the first goaltender selected in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft.[3] He attended the Buffalo Sabres Development Camp in July 2022.[8] He has been invited to the 2023 Sabres Development camp. [9]

International play

Leinonen represented Finland at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics,[10] where he played 10 games with a .877 save percentage.[11]

Leinonen represented Finland at the 2022 IIHF World U18 Championships,[12] where he recorded a 2.61 goals against average and a .897 save percentage in 5 games played.[5]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP W L OTL MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2019–20 JYP U20 22 68 .910
2020–21 JYP U20 15 41 2.59 .895 3 8 2.67 .860
2021–22 JYP U20 21 9 10 0 1264 48 2 2.28 .916
2021–22 JYP Liiga 4 0 1 2 215 5 0 5.02 .825
2021–22 KeuPa HT Mestis 2 1 1 0 95 5 0 3.15 .861
2022–23 JYP U20 23 12 10 0 1 2.72 .885
2022–23 JYP Liiga 8 1 5 1 390 20 1 3.08 .858
2022–23 KeuPa HT Mestis 2 1 1 0 116 7 0 3.61 .868
Liiga totals 12 1 6 3 605 25 1 3.77 .844

International

Year Team Event Result GP W L OT MIN GA SO GAA SV%
2022 Finland U18 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 5 3 2 0 299 13 0 2.61 .897
Junior totals 5 3 2 0 299 13 0 2.61 .897

References

  1. "Stats - Leinonen Topias". liiga.fi. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  2. Ryndak, Chris. "2022 NHL Draft Tracker: Sabres pick 8 players on Day 2". NHL.com. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  3. 1 2 Lenzi, Rachel (8 July 2022). "Five things to know about Sabres second-round pick Topias Leinonen". Buffalo News. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  4. Dancziger, Arlen (19 May 2022). "Topias Leinonen – 2022 NHL Draft Prospect Profile". The Hockey Writers. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  5. 1 2 "Topias Leinonen at eliteprospects.com". www.eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  6. 1 2 Kerr, Ben (28 June 2022). "2022 NHL Draft: Topias Leinonen Scouting Report". Last Word On Hockey. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  7. "2022 Draft Prospect Rankings". www.nhl.com. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  8. Strozyk, Jacob D. (14 July 2022). "Buffalo Sabres Development Camp Standouts". The Hockey Writers. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  9. Ryndak, Chris. "Sabres announce 2023 development camp roster". NHL.com. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
  10. "Rosters". www.hockeycanada.ca. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  11. "Finland U16 at eliteprospects.com". www.eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  12. "IIHF - Finland". IIHF International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
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