Kasperi Kapanen
Kasperi Kapanen was born in Kuopio, Eastern Finland Province, Finland on July 23rd, 1996 and is the Hockey Player. At the age of 27, Kasperi Kapanen biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
At 27 years old, Kasperi Kapanen has this physical status:
Kasperi Kapanen (born 23 July 1996) is a Finnish professional ice hockey forward for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL).
During the 2012–13 SM-liiga season, he made his Liiga debut with KalPa.
In the first round, 22nd overall, of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, Kapanen was selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins. Kapanen joined his father Sami Kapanen in a SM-liiga game on January 12, 2013.
Personal life
Despite being born in and playing in Kuopio, Finland, Kapanen considers himself a Philadelphia boy, having spent a significant portion of his formative years in the city while his dad was playing for the Philadelphia Flyers. Despite this, he identifies himself as a "kid from Finland." Before his father Sami's departure from the Hartford Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes franchise, Kapanen lived in Farmington, Connecticut, and Cary, North Carolina.
Kapanen spent parts of the 2012–13 and 2013–14 seasons for KalPa, as his father was a member of the SM-Liiga. Cassandra, Camila, 2001, and Konsta, 2003, are three siblings.
Kasperi is the grandson of former professional ice hockey player Hannu Kapanen, Kimmo Kapanen's uncle, and Oliver Kapanen's cousin.
Playing career
Kasperi Kapanen's father, Sami Kapanen, was part of a group that acquired the latter's junior team in Finland, KalPa, prior to the 2004-05 NHL lockout. Kasperi Kapanen made his bantam debut with KalPa's under-16 affiliate in the Jr. C SM-Sarja, despite being part of the team since. Kasperi Kapanen led the team in goals and finished second in points, but they were unable to help them win their playoff qualifier. Kasperi spent eight games on the under-16 squad (scoring 16 points in the process) before moving to the Jr. B SM-Sarja's under-18 team in the Jr. B SM-Sarja. Kapanen continued his strong scoring in 25 games, finishing second in both goals (13) and points. He continued his youth in Finland's junior system, scoring 29 points in 36 games, mainly leading the team in goals (14) and placing fourth in points. He appeared in 13 games with the senior KalPa team in Finland's top professional league during the 2012–2013 season, alongside his father. Kapanen was selected to compete for the Finland under-18 national team in the 2013 IIHF World U18 Championships at the end of the year. Kapanen led Finland in goals and was second in points as he helped the team win a bronze medal finish.
Kapanen spent the bulk of the season with KalPa, scoring 7 goals in 47 games for a club that finished last in the league in a draft. He had been expected to play in the 2014 World Junior Championship as a result of his injury in the last session, and he was unable to participate. Kapanen's draft did not have a negative effect on his mid-season and final Central Scouting rankings among European-based skaters, although he finished atop both the mid-season and final Central Scouting rankings. Kapanen was sent by KalPa's under-20 affiliate both suspended from the respective playoffs, and he assisted the Jr. B SM-Sarja team in its third-place finish in the third round. Despite playing in only four games, Kapanen tied for the team lead in playoff goals with six goals. Kapanen was on Finland's under-18 squad for second year in a row, but his team lost just two points in five games as Finland was eliminated in the quarter-final round after a humiliating loss to Sweden in a heavy 10–0 loss.
Despite being ranked 10th, 13th, and 18th top overall prospect by several NHL franchises, Kapanen was eventually selected 22nd overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second year after Olli Määttä in 2012. When Jim Rutherford, the Penguins' general manager at the time, also drafted Kasperi's father when he was still general manager of the Hartford Whalers in 1995. Kapanen signed a three-year, entry-level deal with the Penguins on July 11, 2014.
Kapanen was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs as part of a blockbuster, multi-player contract involving star forward Phil Kessel on July 1, 2015.
Kapanen defeated Russia in overtime to win the gold medal at the 2016 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.
Kapanen joined the Toronto Marlies' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Maple Leafs, in the 2015–16 season. Kapanen was a key player in the AHL and was a key role on a deep Marlies team that finished first in league standings. On February 29, 2016, he made his NHL debut against the Tampa Bay Lightning as part of a night where four players will make their NHL debut, including William Nylander. Kapanen will play nine games for the struggling Maple Leafs before being sent to the Marlies for the team's 2016 Calder Cup playoff campaign. Despite being ranked as the top seed in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Marlies were eliminated by the Hershey Bears.
Kapanen returned to the Marlies in the following season and quickly became one of the best players in the league. Despite periods of injury, he was still scoring at a point-a-game before being sent to the Maple Leafs late in the season. Kapanen was a member of the fourth line alongside Brian Boyle and Matt Martin, who were able to play well in limited minutes. On 8 April 2017, he scored his first NHL goal against the Penguins, the team that had drafted him. The goal was a pivotal one in a game that saw the team advance to the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 2013, a remarkable feat considering that the Maple Leafs finished last in the entire league the previous season. In Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, he scored 8:07 left with 8:07 on double overtime, beating the Washington Capitals 4–3 to tie the series at one game apiece. In six games, the Leafs lost the series.
Kapanen was sent to the Marlies to begin the 2017-18 season, but after playing six games for the Marlies, he was recalled on October 28, 2017. On Friday, he was sent back to the Marlies, only to be back on December 12th. He had been selected for the 2018 AHL All-Star Game but Andreas Johnsson had to replace him. Kapanen scored his first and only goal of the 2018 playoffs against the Boston Bruins in Game 7, becoming the youngest player in NHL history to score a shorthanded goal in a Game 7. The Maple Leafs lost the series 3–4. Kapanen joined the Finland senior national team at the 2018 IIHF World Championship after the Maple Leafs' defeat.
Kapanen began the 2018–19 season NHL after attending the Maple Leafs' training camp. Kapanen flipped his spot on the team's top line as teammate William Nylander remained unsigned and in labour talks with Toronto. Kapanen won 20 goals and 44 points in 78 games to end the season.
Kapanen signed a new three-year, $9.6 million deal with Toronto, equaling a $3.2 million annual average.
Kapanen was traded by the Maple Leafs back to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Filip Hllander, David Warsofsky, and Pittsburgh's first-round pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, Rodion Amirov).
Kapanen was signed to a two-year, $6.4 million contract extension with the Penguins on July 20, 2022, as a restricted free agent following the 2021–22 season.