Despite Pelicans losing to Tappara 7-3 and Haatanen getting -3 in the process, I thought he played a solid game. He had a solid scoring chance, but he wasn’t able to score after a great deke. Overall, the forward looked solid and his skating was effortless. In my previous viewing, he already showcased above average puck-handling skills, but back then he tried bit too much. But in this game, his play with the puck was solid, he showed a good poise and he played a simple game when it was required. On top of that, his creativity and passing skills are excellent. Haatanen is an excellent player for this level of play and it is interesting to see how he does in pro game against bigger opponents.

Haatanen has been clearly above one point per game this season and he got one more point against HIFK. He got the primary assist for the decisive 4-2 empty net goal. Haatanen was part of the Pelicans power play unit and he recorded over 22 minutes of ice time and he also had five shots in the game.

Haatanen is skilled and quick player.  His skating is effortless and he was able to beat opposing players with his speed. Haatanen was clearly the player who ran the power play and he gave solid performance in that area. However in 5-on-5, I thought that he tries to make things happen all by himself. He wanted the puck and usually tried to deke through the defenders, but due to that habit, he lost the puck often before really managing to create anything.

He really should simplify his game before entering pro league, especially due to his pretty small size. He should have capabilities to play quicker game, especially when he showed capability to give really good and creative passes too. Also on the positive side, Haatanen seems to be well aware of his defensive responsibilities and he eagerly came to help the defenders. He was efficient in the defensive zone and I was impressed how many times he was able to steal the puck.

Haatanen played 19 minutes for Pelicans in a 5-8 win against Tappara. Haatanen played left wing on the top line, and he also played the half-wall position on the top power play unit.

Haatanen had an excellent game even though he didn’t get any points. He’s capable of making opposing defenders look foolish when he gets past them with the puck. His speed through the neutral zone looked very good, and he was able to make plays at top speed. Even though he’s not big, he does a good job protecting the puck when moving around with it. He also delivered some good hits.

He also showed very good creativity on the power play, and most of their power play seemed to be running through him. I also liked the way he went after loose pucks, and he stole the puck a couple of times as well. He also did a nice job filling in for a pinching defenseman in the offensive zone.