Heponiemi made his pro league debut playing alongside Rasmus Kupari who was selected in the first round by Los Angeles Kings this summer. Heponiemi is known for his well-rounded offensive game abilities and strong hockey IQ.

Heponiemi, who was the 40th pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, also showcased his two-way play and forechecking abilities in the neutral zone. He turned the direction of the game quickly and effectively. His stickhandling abilities are top-notch but he needs to polish his passes in tight spaces. The Finn doesn’t hesitate after takeaways and thinks the game fast by setting up his teammates to scoring chances.

Heponiemi played on Kärpät’s second PP unit. His passing game was occasionally sloppy but he will almost certainly get more consistent with the puck. Overall, he’s already a dangerous and crafty player in the Finnish Elite League despite his size.

Heponiemi played over 18 minutes against Denmark and even saw some time on power play but he wasn’t able to get any points and recorded only one shot.

Heponiemi is physically immature and lost majority of his board battles even against the Danes. However his offensive skills are still spectacular. He plays solid passing game, and he showed great stickhandling abilities couple of times. He didn’t carry the puck too much and showed nice vision recognizing the situations well when to keep the puck and when to pass it.

He is not the quickest player when looking the top speed, but he is agile and his lateral movement is above average. Forward was also aware of his defensive responsibilities constantly and he was usually the first player of his line to help defenders when it was required.

Heponiemi had a very impressive game for Finland U18, showing excellent offensive skill set. His hands and passing were great and he also scored the tying 2-2 goal in the second period. In addition, his lateral agility and smooth skating stood out. He was constantly aware of his defensive duties and his reading of the game was also at a good level.