Joakim Kemell celebrates with teammates during Finland's win against Latvia.
photo: Andre Ringuette / HHOF-IIHF Images
It should come as little surprise to anyone that perhaps the best player on opening day of the 2022 World Juniors was Finnish forward Joakim Kemell. Despite being the only 2004-born player on Suomi, he had two goals and two assists in a 6-1 win over Latvia and was the most dominant player on ice.
But Kemell has had a memorable season both at home and internationally, and he seems poised to take his game to a higher level here in Edmonton.
In Finland, he has been part of the Jyvaskyla system, first for their junior team and last season in the Liiga. In IIHF play, he played in the 2021 U18, the cancelled World Juniors last Christmas, the 2022 U18, and now the re-scheduled 2022 U20. To top it off, he was selected 17th overall by Nashville at the NHL Entry Draft last month.
Kemell’s development has been consistent, but he knows he has a long way to go before becoming a regular in the NHL. After being drafted, he attended a rookie camp with the Predators, where he got a sense of what his strengths are and what he still needs to work on.
“We had a development camp,” he said after yesterday’s win. “There was a high level of play, but I felt like I belonged in this group and felt good. But I know I need to improve my strength and skill.”
Kemell is at that delicate stage in his career where he can see the NHL clearly, but he knows he must remain patient and not think about making the team this October. “We didn’t talk that much about my future,” he said of talks with Nashville at their camp, “so I’m not sure what they’re thinking yet. But I think I’ll play one more year in Finland and develop there, and then I think I’ll be ready to play in the NHL.”
For a European 18-year-old, another year in the domestic league is never a bad thing. But Kemell has been on a bit of a roller coaster this season. After the 2021 U18s, he naturally progressed to the World Junior team for last December (no points in two games). But after its cancellation he returned to the U18 tournament two months ago in Germany. It was a step down, but he dominated, scoring six goals in five games, most on the team. Two of those came in a 4-1 win over Czechia in the bronze-medal game. But now he has to re-adjust for a better level of competition.
“It’s a more physical game and the speed is greater here than at the U18s,” Kemell notes. “I’m one of the younger players now, but I’m just going to help however I can and give everything I’ve got. I just want to show what kind of a player I am.”
Playing the World Juniors in the summer is a double-edged sword for the young Finn. On the one hand, any game experience at this level is welcome; on the other, it takes away from the more personal development he needs to work on to play pro. “It’s tough to train in the summer when I’m here, but we also have an opportunity to win a gold medal,” he continued. “There are a lot of good teams, so we’ll do what we can do and focus on our game.”
Despite his good season, Kemell’s draft slotting was a bit of a surprise. Some considered him a top-5 prospect, and virtually everyone thought he was a lock for top-10. That Preds’ GM David Poile was able to snag him at number 17 was an unexpected turn, but Kemell handled the “disappointment” well. “It didn’t bother me at all. Seventeen is only a number. It was in the first round, and there are lots of good players.”
So Kemell’s future is pretty linear right now. Help Finland in Edmonton during the next two weeks; work on his physical maturity and skills development at home; play another year in Liiga; re-assess things in the spring of 2023. That plan starts now, at the World Juniors.
But Kemell has had a memorable season both at home and internationally, and he seems poised to take his game to a higher level here in Edmonton.
In Finland, he has been part of the Jyvaskyla system, first for their junior team and last season in the Liiga. In IIHF play, he played in the 2021 U18, the cancelled World Juniors last Christmas, the 2022 U18, and now the re-scheduled 2022 U20. To top it off, he was selected 17th overall by Nashville at the NHL Entry Draft last month.
Kemell’s development has been consistent, but he knows he has a long way to go before becoming a regular in the NHL. After being drafted, he attended a rookie camp with the Predators, where he got a sense of what his strengths are and what he still needs to work on.
“We had a development camp,” he said after yesterday’s win. “There was a high level of play, but I felt like I belonged in this group and felt good. But I know I need to improve my strength and skill.”
Kemell is at that delicate stage in his career where he can see the NHL clearly, but he knows he must remain patient and not think about making the team this October. “We didn’t talk that much about my future,” he said of talks with Nashville at their camp, “so I’m not sure what they’re thinking yet. But I think I’ll play one more year in Finland and develop there, and then I think I’ll be ready to play in the NHL.”
For a European 18-year-old, another year in the domestic league is never a bad thing. But Kemell has been on a bit of a roller coaster this season. After the 2021 U18s, he naturally progressed to the World Junior team for last December (no points in two games). But after its cancellation he returned to the U18 tournament two months ago in Germany. It was a step down, but he dominated, scoring six goals in five games, most on the team. Two of those came in a 4-1 win over Czechia in the bronze-medal game. But now he has to re-adjust for a better level of competition.
“It’s a more physical game and the speed is greater here than at the U18s,” Kemell notes. “I’m one of the younger players now, but I’m just going to help however I can and give everything I’ve got. I just want to show what kind of a player I am.”
Playing the World Juniors in the summer is a double-edged sword for the young Finn. On the one hand, any game experience at this level is welcome; on the other, it takes away from the more personal development he needs to work on to play pro. “It’s tough to train in the summer when I’m here, but we also have an opportunity to win a gold medal,” he continued. “There are a lot of good teams, so we’ll do what we can do and focus on our game.”
Despite his good season, Kemell’s draft slotting was a bit of a surprise. Some considered him a top-5 prospect, and virtually everyone thought he was a lock for top-10. That Preds’ GM David Poile was able to snag him at number 17 was an unexpected turn, but Kemell handled the “disappointment” well. “It didn’t bother me at all. Seventeen is only a number. It was in the first round, and there are lots of good players.”
So Kemell’s future is pretty linear right now. Help Finland in Edmonton during the next two weeks; work on his physical maturity and skills development at home; play another year in Liiga; re-assess things in the spring of 2023. That plan starts now, at the World Juniors.