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Prospect update: Ciccolini’s hot start and Lundkvist’s big weekend

By Steve Paulus

LOWELL, MA - FEBRUARY 21: Zac Jones #24 of the Massachusetts Minutemen skates against the Massachusetts Lowell River Hawks during NCAA men's hockey at the Tsongas Center on February 21, 2020 in Lowell, Massachusetts. The River Hawks won 3-2. (Photo by Richard T Gagnon/Getty Images)
LOWELL, MA - FEBRUARY 21: Zac Jones #24 of the Massachusetts Minutemen skates against the Massachusetts Lowell River Hawks during NCAA men's hockey at the Tsongas Center on February 21, 2020 in Lowell, Massachusetts. The River Hawks won 3-2. (Photo by Richard T Gagnon/Getty Images) /
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New YOrk Rangers prospect Tarmo Reunanen (Photo by Dennis Pajot/Getty Images)
New YOrk Rangers prospect Tarmo Reunanen (Photo by Dennis Pajot/Getty Images) /

Tarmo Reunanen (D) –2016 4th round – #98

Tarmo Reunanen played in two games for HPK, newly promoted from the Mestis League.  He is certainly getting a lot of ice time and in the second game it paid off.

In the first game on Friday, HPK lost 7-2 to Lukko.  Reunanen played 22:52 and was +1 on the night, notable in a goal when HPK was outscored by five goals. He had one shot on goal.

In the second game, HPK lost 3-2 to TPS in a shootout Saturday as they went to a skills competition for the third time in the last four games.  With the goalie pulled, Reunanen scored the tying goal for HPK with only 49 seconds left in the game.  It came ten seconds after HPK called a timeout to set up a play.

Reunanen was on the ice for both HPK goals, finishing with  plus/minus of +2.  He also had six shots on goal and played 28:58 over three minutes more than anyone else on his team.

After dominating in a brief stint in the Mestis League, Reunanen is showing something in the top Liiga league in Finland and may be a contender for a starting job with the Rangers.

Lauri Pajuniemi (RW) – 2018 5th round – # 132

Another New York Rangers prospect was in action in the game when Reunanen scored and that was forward Lauri Pajuniemi of TPS Turku.  Pajuniemi also scored,  notching an even strength second period goal that put TPS ahead 2-1.

The goal was Pajuniemi’s second of the season and his second in three games.  Hopefully he over the leg injury that cost him seven games and is beginning to heat up.

Pajuniemi was one of the Rangers’ best scoring prospect last season in Liiga with 26 goals in 49 games.  TPS is still struggling with only four regulation wins in 15 games.

Leevi Aaltonen (LW)  – 2019 5th round – # 130

Leevi Aaltonen had gotten off to a rough start with KalPa in Liiga and recently started playing with IPK in the Mestis League.  In Liiga he had been playing barely six minutes a games and had two assists in 10 games.

With IPK he has played two games and is getting a lot of ice time.  In his first game last Wednesday, he scored two power play goals in a 4-3 loss to Hermes.  Here is his first goal, a snap shot from the faceoff circle.

On Friday he added an assist in IPK’s 5-2 win over Hokki.   He played about 15 minutes in each game so he is getting decent ice time and will hopefully show enough to warrant a promotion back to Liiga.

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