LA Kings: Third-round pick Kasper Simontaival loaned to Mestis
By Ryan Sikes
LA Kings’ 2020 third-round pick Kasper Simontaival has been loaned to TUTO Hockey of the Mestis while the NHL finalizes the 2020-2021 season start date.
As has been the recent trend in this odd year, Kasper Simontaival is the latest LA Kings prospect to be loaned, according to ProHockeyRumors. The Kings took him with the 66th overall pick in the draft, and he’s profiled as a “prolific goal-scorer with quick, quality hands,” per DraftIn Europe.
The 18-year-old, who hails from Tampere, Finland, scored 25 goals with 32 assists for 57 points in 48 games for the Tappara U20 team last year. He also tallied 8 goals in international play with 6 assists in 8 games for the Finland U18 team.
And him being loaned went under-the-radar, as he’s already played in four games for Tappara this season while the NHL and its’ corresponding leagues determine an official start date for the season. Through the first four games, Simontaival had one assist and two penalty minutes.
Now he will join the TUTO Hockey club of the Mestis league, which ranks just below the Liiga.
Simontaival joins Alex Turcotte, Akil Thomas, Tyler Madden, Jacob Ingham, Aidan Duas, Tobias Bjornfot, and Carl Grundstrom – to name a few – continuing their development across the pond.
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Simontaival will continue to have good development experience there – with the expectation that he’ll see more time on ice than he did with Tappara – until he eventually transitions to the North American rink.