IN DEPTH: Kolossal

Two summers ago from his home in Helsinki, Mikko Koskinen decided that the upcoming season for SKA St. Petersburg would be his last in Russia, and that the mountain of the Kontinental Hockey League had been conquered.
He'd come to similar conclusions multiple times before during his career, like he did joining the New York Islanders for his first North American stint in 2009 as a drafted rookie, returning three years later to Europe to dominate the crease in his native Finland and the KHL, or when given the chance on more than one occasion to represent his country on the international stage.
The next big step needed to be taken.
Four years between the pipes for the renowned Russian hockey club provided the Finnish giant the platform needed for him to establish himself as one of the KHL's elite goaltenders and win two Gagarin Cups, which he holds up to this day as his greatest hockey achievements.
But an abundance of ambition, and a lack of time, was pushing him back to close the book on the one chapter of his career he hadn't fully been able to finish - the National Hockey League.

"I won a few times in the KHL and felt there wasn't much more of a challenge left for me there," Koskinen said of his three-year tenure in Russia's second-largest city, about a four-and-a-half-hour drive from his hometown of Vantaa just north of the Finnish capital.
"I want to challenge myself as a goalie every day, and I felt it was the right time to come over and show to myself that I can do even better."
Koskinen, who'd always elect to have his actions in goal speak far louder than his few words, finished his final year for SKA with poise, posting a commanding 1.57 goals against average and a .937 save percentage during the 2017-18 KHL regular season while catching the eye of a handful of North American clubs in the process.
He also made five appearances for the blue and white of Finland at the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang that year, climbing another step up the ladder after already earning two silver medals at the IIHF World Hockey Championships in 2014 and 2016.
Through rigorous KHL training camps in Siberia and St. Petersburg, international tournaments, and a long-awaited return to the NHL with the Edmonton Oilers, Koskinen maintains the strong sense of resolve he uses to block out white noise when he steps onto the ice for another 60 minutes in the blue paint.
"This is my last opportunity for me to come back here and prove myself," he said. "That's what I'm trying to do every day."
Koskinen maintains an image of mystery to the many fans and media pundits alike who poke and prod at the motivations of the netminder, whose physical projection more than makes up for his lack in commentary.
The 30-year-old has no reservations about his position on the ice, in the Oilers dressing room as part of a goaltending tandem with Cam Talbot, or as a netminder making what could be his final foray into the ranks of the hockey hierarchy.
If he did, he wouldn't be the one to tell you.
"Yeah, it's better that way," Koskinen said with a smirk of his silent and independent approach.
"I can do my own thing and keep it like that."