Finnish Penguins Impress in Loss to Canada - NhungD

The 2024 IIHF World Championship has current or former members of the Pittsburgh Penguins organization everywhere you look. Team Finland, in particular, has a pair of current Penguins and a handful of former players.

Despite Finland's recent loss to Team Canada, Jesse Puljujarvi and Valtteri Puustinen stood out. Puljujarvi and Puustinen combined for all three goals scored by the Finns in the 5-3 loss.

Puljujarvi opened the scoring early in the contest, corralling his own rebound after an initial deflection. While peeling away from the net, Puljujarvi never lost control of the puck and gave Finland a 1-0 lead under two minutes in.

Not long after, Puustinen got on the board for his first-ever goal at the international level. In his fifth game of the tournament, Puustinen’s goal was his first point, putting Finland up 2-0.

Team Canada crawled back to tie the score at two before the end of the first period.

Puljujarvi notched his second goal in the second period to give Finland the lead again. A point shot from a Finnish defender missed the net but bounced straight to Puljujarvi, who didn’t miss the open opportunity.

However, that was all Finland could score as the Canadians battled back to take a 5-3 win.

Puljujarvi has scored three goals and two assists for five points. Puustinen is still looking for more production, as this goal is his only point.

Make sure you bookmark Inside the Penguins for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more.