Räsänen played a total of 22:47 for Tappara U20 in their wild card playoff game against HPK U20. He played on the top pair and was also used on both special teams.

Räsänen didn’t have any points in the game but he had a great all-around game. He joined the rush a few times, and especially one of them was very impressive. He recognized the opportunity for an odd-man rush, jumped into it, and got a great scoring chance. He was consistent throughout the game and was trusted to protect a 2-1 lead late in the game – a game they had to win or otherwise they would have been eliminated from the playoffs. He made a couple of mistakes when he tried to do a more complicated play than what was needed. When he keeps his game simple, he’s very effective.

Räsänen doesn’t seem to have any high-end tools which will likely block him from becoming a top-four defenseman at the NHL level. But he has enough skill to play in the NHL one day. He could become a steadying two-way defenseman who makes a great first pass or carries the puck up the ice himself if needed. His compete level is great, and he doesn’t seem to mind hard puck-battles. He’s consistently good and reliable which allows coaches to trust him in all situations.

Räsänen played on the 2nd pair for Tappara U20 team. He also played on both special teams. All in all, he played 23 minutes in the game his team lost 3-4. Räsänen had an assist on the power play – it was just a simple pass from the blue line but one that landed perfectly for a one-timer by Hugo Has.

Räsänen was very noticeable in this game. He started a lot of plays from behind his own net. He either found a teammate with a breakout pass or he carried the puck to the red line for a dump-in. His transition play looked better than I’ve seen from him before.

Räsänen made a couple of mistakes in the game as well. He allowed a shorthanded breakaway when both the player and the puck went through him. He also made couple of smaller mistakes. Those are still things he needs to work on but I liked what I saw from him in this game.

Räsänen was playing big minutes as Tappara’s top-pairing defenceman and had a good game in their 3-2 loss against JYP. Räsänen was used heavily in even strength and he was also running Tappara’s first power play unit.

His skating looked decent, but the thing that impressed me was his poise and puck-handling ability. Räsänen was clearly Tappara’s most skilled blueliner and he handled the puck well in all three zones. Räsänen’s first passes were hard and accurate, and he looked good distributing the puck from the point on the power play. Räsänen’s defensive game looked overall decent, even though he got beaten multiple times in 1 on 1 situations. He was trusted to play on the penalty kill.

I came away from the game impressed with Räsänen. He was able to log a ton of minutes while playing an effective two-way game. He should get some consideration as a potential NHL pick next summer.

Räsänen played on the top pair for Tappara U20. He was also used on penalty kill, and he manned the blue line for their second power play unit.

Räsänen had a decent game but he didn’t look as impressive as he did a week ago. His minutes seemed to be reduced. He did, however, play on the first 3-on-3 unit in overtime which shows the confidence his coaching staff has in him. Very impressive 1-on-1 rush defense against Otto Kivenmäki in overtime – most defenders at this level are unable to contain him.

Räsänen played on the top pair for Tappara U20. He was also used on penalty kill, and he manned the blue line for their second power play unit.

Even though Räsänen is the youngest defenseman on his team, he was arguably their best in this game. Played big minutes and showed good two-way skills. Defensively, his biggest strength seems to be his rush defense but his defensive zone coverage is pretty good as well. Very actively using his stick to break up passes.

Offensively, he’s capable of exiting the zone even when pressured. He also likes to join the rush when possible. Made a good offensive zone pinch and scored a goal with a nice wrist shot.

The young defenceman played for 20 minutes in a 2-4 loss against Jukurit. He seems to have a very big role in his team playing a lot in special teams too.

Räsänen seems to have pretty good tools for becoming modern defensive defenceman. While he is at best at the own end, he still has some hands. He can give quick and crisp passes and he carried the puck with confidence and joined the rush when necessary. While his technical skill set is not exceptionally good, he knows his limits very well and plays accordingly.

His skating is still his biggest weakness. While he is not slow skater, he is often in problems in quick transitions and he tends to give up in these situations too easily. Also there seems to be occasional problems in reading the play at the defensive side. However Räsänen has improved his strength and he shows more physicality than before. Räsänen is a very tough defender to beat at this level and the positive sides of his game should make transition to pro game relatively easy.

The performance of Räsänen in this game was a mixed bag. He is physically mature player who seems to have physical elements in his game but he doesn’t use his body as well as he could all the time. For the most time he seems like focusing on just the defensive side, but he occasionally likes to join the rush too. At the own end he could improve his positioning because he looked to be out of position surprisingly often.

Räsänen is calm with the puck and mostly does simple decisions but sometimes he becomes hasty and during these situations his lack of high end puck skills are apparent. His skating needs some work and he needs to improve his agility and first steps. However he is very quick when he gets his feet going.