Leevi Meriläinen’s name has been in the headlines recently.
No, the quiet Finn hasn’t made waves with quotes or controversy, but rather with a pair of trips to Belleville.
The Senators reassigned the 23-year-old to their AHL affiliate for two short stints while there were no upcoming back-to-backs on their own schedule, a perfect chance for the young netminder to get some reps in.
Meriläinen may have flown under the radar a bit over the past couple of weeks, but after dropping his first decision to division-leading Syracuse, he won meetings with Laval and then a rematch with Syracuse.
Paired with a win over Boston on Oct. 27 with the Sens, the netminder holds a three-game win streak entering a weekend back-to-back for the big club in Philadelphia and then back at home against Utah.
“You know what, it’s been good in a way, to get some games under my belt, to have more game feeling again,” Meriläinen told Sens360 before the team left for a two-game swing to Boston and Philadelphia.
Ultimately, Meriläinen has not spent an entire season in the AHL since being drafted in the third round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, a rarity for goalies these days. That’s why getting into as much game action as possible is so important for the young goaltender.
Belleville head coach David Bell spoke to TSN 1200 about Meriläinen’s upbeat nature and willingness to accept those reps earlier this week. Bell said both Meriläinen and Hunter Shepard (who has been recalled to Ottawa when the former is reassigned) are very similar in that aspect.
“They’re both gamers, they’re both super prepared,” said Bell. “They come up and down, you call them, they’re going to get back to Belleville at two o’clock in the morning after the game in Ottawa, and [I say], ‘You don’t need to be at the rink tomorrow,’ and [they respond], ‘No, I’ll be there.’ They’re both the same, they’re both workhorses.”
“You definitely want to be on the ice as much as you can when you’re not playing, for sure,” said Meriläinen. “You want to get those reps in, a little extra after practice. It’s not easy when you go out there with bad sleep and long travel days behind you, but that’s the sport we play and the job we have, so I’m not complaining.”
Meriläinen had to stand tall during his last game with Belleville, when the B-Sens allowed 42 shots to Syracuse. “I like those games, more than those when you get 15 shots or something like that,” Meriläinen said. “You stay in the game more; you have good rhythm going.”
Bell could only laugh afterwards about recalling his goaltender’s workload on Saturday.
“He walked into the dressing room in Syracuse, I said ‘Alright Leevi, you take care of the first 40 [shots], and we’ll take care of the rest,” said Bell. “Sure enough, we gave up 42 shots but we got the win. Leevi’s Leevi.”
The Finn has played in 68 AHL games overall over parts of the past four seasons and holds a .911 save percentage and 2.59 goals-against average. Those numbers are similar to his from 16 NHL games, where he holds a .907 save percentage and a 2.56 goals-against average.
“It’s good that we have a team close enough that he can go down and get some minutes in,” said Travis Green on Monday.
“I think it’s important that he does get some game action. We’re going to need him to play, and play well. I thought he took a big step against Boston last game, and we need to keep him sharp.”
