Jesse Pulkkinen
2023-24 Team: JYP (Liiga)
Date of Birth: Dec. 27, 2004
Place of Birth: Laukaa, Finland
Ht: 6-foot-6 Wt: 216 pounds
Shoots: L
Position: D
NHL Draft Eligibility: 2024 second-year eligible
Rankings
- NHL Central Scouting: 15th (among EU skaters)
- Future Considerations: 24th
- Peter Baracchini’s March Rankings: 33rd
- Andrew Forbes February Rankings: 70th
- Logan Horn’s April Rankings: 64th
- Bob McKenzie’s Rankings (midterm): 33rd
- Dobber Prospects April Rankings: 29th
- Recruit Scouting: 31st
After getting passed over in the 2023 NHL Draft, Jesse Pulkkinen has been slowly climbing the draft charts this season, thanks to a big breakout in Finland’s professional circuit. He started 2023-24 with JYP’s U20 team, scoring 28 points in 18 games. That was more than he had in his previous U20 experience combined, so JYP decided to give him a taste of the pro level, loaning him out to KeuPa HT, a team in the second-tier Mestis league, in November.
After six games, he had two goals and four points, so JYP decided to call him up to the big club. By his fifth game, he already had two assists, and by his 17th game, he was playing nearly 20 minutes a night as one of the team’s top defenders. When the season finished, he ranked fourth points among U20 defenders playing in the Liiga.
Pulkkinen’s puck skills are evident from his stats alone. Of his 28 points in the U20 league, 11 were goals, and when JYP returned him to the lower level for the playoffs, he ranked third among defencemen with four goals and 10 points, despite that his team was eliminated in the second round. He has a powerful shot that doesn’t require a big wind-up, allowing him to fire it from almost anywhere on the ice, but he also has incredibly soft hands and can weave in and out of opponents while keeping perfect control of the puck.
Related: THW’s 2024 NHL Draft Guide
Pulkkinen is also a decent skater, using strong, powerful strides to build up momentum that helps him effortlessly glide around the ice, and his use of edges can help him pull off hairpin turns that other forwards can’t respond quickly enough to, leading to large gaps of open ice that can result in a great scoring chance. He can watch the player’s feet and know which way they are going to go, allowing him to move in the opposite direction. He thinks the game like a forward, using deception and feints to create space and slip through the defence.
However, Pulkkinen is 6-foot-6. Players that big shouldn’t be able to do that.
Yet, Pulkkinen also thinks like a defenceman, using his size and strength to create space by pushing opponents off the puck or protecting the puck along the boards. He doesn’t need to avoid getting hit and can often absorb the contact while still maintaining control of the puck, and he can do so two or three more times before dishing the puck back to a teammate who suddenly has plenty of room to fire off a shot. He can also throw huge hits, which led to him being one of the most penalized players in the U18 circuit in 2021-22.
Size has always been important for NHL prospects, especially on defence. For years, teams took chances on big players, hoping the rest of their skills would round themselves out, but that’s changed. Now, if a player is big, they have to bring a decent level of puck skills and skating, otherwise, the investment is not worth the risk. Pulkkinen is still a risky pick, but his ability to play both ends of the ice so dominantly at a professional level makes him an interesting package.
Other Draft Profiles
Jesse Pulkkinen – NHL Draft Projection
Overage prospects are rarely drafted in the first round; in recent memory, the only players who have done it are Tanner Pearson in 2012 and David Perron in 2007. Brett Leason was projected to be a first-round pick in 2019 but fell to 56th overall. Still, if anyone is going to do it in 2024, it’s Pulkkinen. More than a few rankings have placed him in the 20-32 range, and given his size, it would not be surprising to see a team take a risk on the big defenceman, especially if they have already made a pick earlier in the draft. However, I’d still bet he falls to an early pick in the second round.
Quotables
“Pulkkinen is the best overage prospect on the market – one whom I wouldn’t be surprised if an NHL team took in the first round. This is a 19-year-old who only seems to keep getting better the more I watch him, especially during the World Juniors. At 6-foot-6 and 216 pounds, he has the size teams crave.” – Steven Ellis, Daily FaceOff
“The 19-year-old Finnish defencemen, an overager in this 2024 draft class, is in the middle of a breakout season. With his 6-foot-6 frame, he will immediately stand out on the ice to scouts, but it’s really his high-end stickhandling skills that give him the best chance of impressing them. His feints and toe-drag moves could surprise a few defenders and help the Finnish team generate scoring chances in the offensive zone. To cement himself as one of the better defensive prospects in this new draft, Pulkkinen will have to continue showing that he can manage the puck well and defend at a high level.” – David St-Louis, EP Rinkside
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“Last year, the only thing notable about Jesse Pulkkinen was his frame, as he only put up four points in 44 games with JYP Jr. This season, Pulkkinen became dominant. He not only activates into the rush but spearheads offensive play with flashes of skill. His 28 points in 18 games for JYP Jr. (yes, you are reading that right) is good for the highest point-per-game rate out of all defensemen in the league. He’s been so impressive that he’s got a few looks in Liiga where he’s fit comfortably in all areas of his game. After being selected to represent Finland at the World Junior Championship, a good tournament could go a long way in front of the scouts.” – Jacob Titus, The Hockey News
Strengths
- Puck control
- Shot
- Strength & Physicality
- Confidence
Under Construction – Improvements to Make
- Aggressiveness
- Passing
- Vision
NHL Potential
Projecting overage prospects is much more challenging than first-year-eligible players because it’s difficult to know whether the player is a late bloomer or is simply benefiting from additional experience and size. For Pulkkinen, we can err on the side of a late bloomer since he was a rookie in the Liiga this season. Teenagers frequently struggle to get ice time, let alone playing time, in the top European leagues, so to see Pulkkinen thrive at 19 years old is a good sign.
Pulkkinen has a few issues in his game that have to be worked out before he can become an effective NHLer. He knows where he needs to be on the ice, but I’m not sure he sees plays developing. He’s creative with his puck movement and can make great breakout passes, but seems to favour carrying the puck rather than looking for the breakout pass. He can do both, but the pass can come when no other option presents itself, which is connected to decision-making.
However, if those issues are fixed, and it’s all but expected they will be, Pulkkinen could become a player like Tyler Myers earlier in his career, employing a combination of size and skill that is rarely seen on the blue line. But he also plays similarly to Tage Thompson, which is almost impossible to imagine as a defenceman. In either case, he’s a unique player in this draft class.
Risk – Reward Analysis
Risk- 3/5, Reward 4/5
Fantasy Hockey Potential
Offense- 7/10, Defense 7/10
Awards/Achievements
- Represented Finland at the 2024 U20 World Junior Championship
- 2021-22 U18 SM-sarja Most Penalized Player