RALEIGH, NC. - Don Waddell, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has signed forward Juha Jaaska to a one-year, entry-level contract for the 2024-25 NHL season. Jaaska will receive $775,000 at the NHL level and $82,500 at the American Hockey League (AHL) level, and the deal will include a signing bonus of $75,000.
“Juha is a veteran forward who brings energy and intensity to every shift,” said Waddell. “He’s performed consistently in Finland, and we’re excited to see what he can do in North America.”
Jaaska, 26, registered 30 points (10g, 20a) in 57 Liiga (Finland) games with HIFK this season while serving as an alternate captain. He added seven points (5g, 2a) in seven postseason games, leading his team in playoff goals and points. Jaaska tallied 142 points (51g, 91a) in 310 career Liiga games over nine seasons, all with HIFK. The 6’0”, 196-pound forward also recorded 22 points (11g, 11a) in 55 career Liiga postseason games and tallied four points (1g, 3a) in 14 career Champions Hockey League games with HIFK. The Helsinki, Finland, native represented his home country at the 2016 IIHF U18 World Championship, winning gold, as well as the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship.
