Finland Stock Watch: Alberts Šmits, Oliver Suvanto grabbing early attention for 2026 NHL Draft

The Finnish hockey season properly kicked off in early September, and since then, a lot has already happened. At all levels of play, some teams have pleasantly surprised and climbed to the top of the standings, while other big names have struggled to live up to the expectations, whether due to their injury loads or poor play.

With the 2025 draft cycle having not been the greatest of times for Finnish talent and scouts trying to evaluate them, this season is already looking much more exciting, with multiple players making their mark early at the Liiga level.

Let’s start this rundown with the player who has arguably impressed us the most over the past month.

Stock Rising 📈

Oliver Suvanto, C, Tappara (2026 NHL Draft)

Jumping directly from the Finnish U18 level to Liiga is a exceedingly rare accomplishment, but that’s exactly what Oliver Suvanto has managed to do. The hulking centre didn’t play a single game at the U20 level last season, instead spending the entire year being a key contributor for Tappara’s championship-winning squad in the U18 ranks. Coming into the season, he wasn’t entirely out of the radar, but also not among the very most hyped up Finnish prospects in his class.

August’s Hlinka Gretzky Cup helped to open evaluators’ eyes, as Suvanto had a very good tournament, centering Finland’s top line and showcasing a mature two-way skill set packaged to a 6-foot-3 frame. At the time, he was still just 16 years old, too. Once the Liiga regular season begun, he had managed to snatch a spot on Tappara’s lineup, having since only grown his role with the team.

All this has elevated Suvanto’s status as a legitimate top prospect who checks a lot of boxes: He’s highly mature and detailed, has excellent habits on both sides of the puck, has the size and physical game to dominate the net-front, all while being among the youngest top prospects in the draft and one whose development over the past few months has been nothing sort of spectacular.

At Elite Prospects, we ended up ranking him 20th on our initial board, and there’s a good chance he would’ve climbed even higher if we created the board today. With the return of Oiva Keskinen to Tappara’s lineup, Suvanto’s role on the team will likely diminish, but at the same time, he certainly hasn’t made giving him any less minutes easy for the coaching staff.

Alberts Šmits, D, Jukurit (2026 NHL Draft)

If he wasn’t already there before the start of the season, Alberts Šmits’ play during September has made him a potential first-rounder in the 2026 class. Ranked 22nd on our first board of the season, Šmits has been on a tear whenever he’s played at the U20 level, having added six goals and 10 points in just five games as a defenceman.

While Šmits already logged over 20 minutes during Jukurit’s regular season opener at the Liiga level, too, he did have a week in the middle of the month where he exclusively played in the junior ranks. Since then, though, he’s played six straight games in Liiga, scoring his first goal of the season while logging over 24 minutes during the most recent outing. As such, one would expect that he’s not being sent down any time soon, other than potentially for the odd game that doesn’t end up causing him to miss any time with the men’s team.

It’s easy to see why Šmits would generate excitement amongst NHL scouts. He’s a big-bodied yet mobile defenceman who tries to constantly push his advantages. He experiments, takes risks, gets involved offensively, and shows play-killing mentality defensively – these are the types of defence prospects NHL teams are coveting today. While he hasn’t had an offensive breakthrough at the Liiga level just yet, don’t be surprised if the points start dropping as he gets more and more comfortable.

Jakub Frolo, C, Ilves U20 (2026 NHL Draft)

Jakub Frolo’s draft-minus-one season already ended in last December, causing him to drift away from the spotlight as his peers shined during the spring. Now back and healthy, he’s managed to rekindle the interest of NHL teams, having added nine points in his first six games with Ilves’ U20 squad, being the team’s most productive member and sitting second in scoring behind Šmits amongst all draft-eligible talent in the league during September.

Frolo has qualities that could eventually make him a bottom-six option at the NHL level. Offensively, the selling point is his vision and passing touch, showcasing a robust delay game off the rush and occasionally being able to pull off creative feeds through layers to create looks for his linemates. He has good supporting habits and also plays with a notable amount of snarl, which could separate him from other prospects of similar stature and projection. While an extra gear as a skater wouldn't hurt, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if he ended up playing some Liiga games as early as this season.

Honourable mentions: Benjamin Rautiainen (Tampa Bay Lightning), Janne Karassaari (2026 NHL Draft)

Stock Steady ↔️

Daniel Nieminen, D, Pelicans (Nashville Predators)

Daniel Nieminen is continuing from where he left off at the end of last season. Earning a sixth-round selection as an over-ager this past summer, Nieminen looked like Finland’s best blueliner at the World Junior Summer Showcase, and added four points in eight games with Pelicans in September to start the Liiga season, averaging over 20 minutes per game while logging notable minutes on both special teams.

Nieminen’s skating remains his calling card and a legitimate elite tool for this level of play, which he’s started to utilize to an even greater extent, ruthlessly pushing the play up the ice whenever he sees even the smallest of openings. His aggressiveness also extends to the defensive side where he continues to show improving contact skills and the desire to kill plays quickly. Based on what he’s shown so far on a struggling team, he’s on track for a strong campaign and will be one of Finland’s cornerstones at the upcoming World Juniors.

Stock Falling 📉

Alex Čiernik, LW, Pelicans (Philadelphia Flyers)

After having spent two post-draft seasons in HockeyAllsvenkan without achieving a true breakout, Alex Čiernik decided to sign with Pelicans in the hopes that a change of scenery would be the key to more success. Having added just two points in the first eight games, it’s fair to say that the first month of the season hasn’t gone as well as he would’ve hoped.

The lack of production isn’t due to a lack of opportunities, either, as Čiernik has spent some time on the team’s top-six and has been a regularly featured on the top power play unit. The speedy winger has the required footspeed and technical ability to succeed at this level, but the lack of higher-end offensive instincts has been a bigger limiting factor in the professional ranks than we initially expected. That being said, his team has also notably struggled offensively; it remains to be seen whether either party can turn things around in the next few months.

Visa Vedenpää, G, Kärpät (Seattle Kraken)

Following Niklas Rubin's injury, Visa Vedenpää was tasked with an unexpected opportunity to showcase his skills as Kärpät's starter while their star netminder was missing from the lineup. However, Vedenpää's start has been far from a smooth one. He allowed four goals in around 50 minutes during the game where Rubin was injured, then let it seven goals against Lukko in his first game as the starter.

The most recent outing against Tappara was his best one so far, but his 17 saves out of 20 shots wasn't enough to secure his team the win. Kärpät ended up bringing in Felix Sandström on emergency basis, but he also had a very disappointing showing in his debut; it's possible that the two will end up splitting games rather evenly over the course of the next month. It’s also worth noting that Vedenpää notably stepped up last weekend, saving 32 shots and only allowing a single goal in Kärpät’s win over Kiekko-Espoo. If he can build up from there, the disastrous first games of his Liiga career won’t be remembered for long.