Topi Niemelä Scouting Report

Niemela has seen some growth in areas of his game, and some drop off in other areas. He is being used in all situations playing in Liiga. On the power-play he is efficient. He directs pucks on net accurately and shows the ability to one-time pucks. Off the rush he can attack with more pace. He is over-handling pucks between the blue-lines/slowing down in the process. He's a reliable defender who is quick to space. For his stature he isn't shy about bumping up against opponents. On the penalty-kill he closes on opponents, shows willingness to block shots, and has an active stick in the lanes. The fact his offense has fallen off requires monitoring.