Urho Vaakanainen Named to Team Finland for 4-Nations Face-Off
Vaakanainen's addition to the roster comes in the wake of injuries to Toronto's Hakanpaa and Dallas' Heiskanen.
With Toronto's Jani Hakanpaa and Dallas' Miro Heiskanen being ruled out for the 4-Nations Face-Off, Rangers Defenseman Urho Vaakanainen will join the team in their place.
#NYR defenseman Urho Vaakanainen has been added to the Team Finland roster for the #4Nations Face-Off. pic.twitter.com/t4roymKxiJ
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) February 2, 2025
The Rangers now have a total of six players on their roster representing three of the four teams participating in the 4-nations tournament. (J.T. Miller, Chris Kreider, Vincent Trocheck and Adam Fox on Team USA, Mika Zibanejad on Team Sweden) Initially, they had players representing three of the four teams but once Kaapo Kakko was dealt to Seattle, they were down to two. Vaakanainen joining Team Finland puts them back to three.
A well-deserved honor for Urho Vaakanainen who has been a solid addition to this Rangers team in a third pair role since coming over in the Jacob Trouba trade. In 21 games with the Rangers, Vaakanainen has registered five assists while adding a steady presence alongside Braden Schneider. The Joensuu, FIN-native has represented Team Finland prior to his NHL days, including a Gold Medal in the 2019 World Juniors as well as a Gold and Silver Medal at the U18 level.
Congrats, Urho!
