| Reijo Ruotsalainen |
| Reijo Juhani Ruotsalainen Defense Right-Handed Shot Height: 5' 8", Weight: 170 pounds Born: 4.1.60 Oulu, Finland |
| How he arrived: Claimed from the Edmonton Oilers in the waiver draft, 10.5.87 How he left: Traded to the Edmonton Oilers for Jeff Sharples, 3.6.90 |
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| Regular Season Statistics with the Franchise Stats in bold signifies team leader. |
I remember this much about Rexi: the dude could skate. He is generally regarded as the greatest skater to ever play Finnish
hockey. I would think so: he was just a biscuit or two bigger than Brian Gionta.
He was not all that big, yet he was a defenseman. It was not expected that Ruotsalainen would pan out as a pro in his home
country, nevermind the NHL. But he did, cranking out excellent seasons while with the Rangers and getting his name on the
Stanley Cup while with the Oilers.
The Devils received his rights when he was playing in Sweden. He would give the NHL one more try in 1989, making the team
out of training camp. He wasn't a fit with what the Devils wanted, though, so he would be traded back to the Oilers, and once
again, name on the Cup.
He would continue playing both in Finland and in Switzerland until 1998, when he retired.
He returned to North America to coach a couple different teams in the ECHL, then went back to Oulu to coach there, as well,
last doing so in 2004. More recently, he served as an assistant coach with Salzburg in the Austrian League in 08-09.
hockey. I would think so: he was just a biscuit or two bigger than Brian Gionta.
He was not all that big, yet he was a defenseman. It was not expected that Ruotsalainen would pan out as a pro in his home
country, nevermind the NHL. But he did, cranking out excellent seasons while with the Rangers and getting his name on the
Stanley Cup while with the Oilers.
The Devils received his rights when he was playing in Sweden. He would give the NHL one more try in 1989, making the team
out of training camp. He wasn't a fit with what the Devils wanted, though, so he would be traded back to the Oilers, and once
again, name on the Cup.
He would continue playing both in Finland and in Switzerland until 1998, when he retired.
He returned to North America to coach a couple different teams in the ECHL, then went back to Oulu to coach there, as well,
last doing so in 2004. More recently, he served as an assistant coach with Salzburg in the Austrian League in 08-09.
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| Entry Draft: 1980 Sixth Round Pick (119th overall) by the New York Rangers |
