Carolina Hurricanes acquire Jesse Puljujarvi from Edmonton Oilers

The Carolina Hurricanes announced on Tuesday that they have acquired forward Jesse Puljujarvi from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Finnish prospect Patrik Puistola.

Puljujarvi, selected fourth overall in the 2016 NHL Draft, has long been a player that the Hurricanes have kept tabs on. He fell out of favor in Edmonton under coaches Todd McLellan and Ken Hitchcock, eventually leaving the Oilers to spend two years with Kärpät in the Finnish Liiga. He re-signed with Edmonton prior to the pandemic-delayed 2020-21 season, and signed a one year, $3 million contract last offseason to avoid arbitration.

Puljujarvi registered a career high of 36 points in 65 games last season. He has posted 14 points in 55 games for Edmonton this year. He will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights after this season.

Prior to his draft year, Puljujarvi teamed with once-and-again teammate Sebastian Aho and Patrik Laine of the Columbus Blue Jackets to post historic numbers at the World Junior Hockey Championships. Puljujarvi registered 17 points in the seven-game tournament, tying Wayne Gretzky and Eric Lindros for second place in tournament history and only one behind Jaromir Jagr’s record of 18. The trio of Puljujarvi, Aho and Laine registered a total of 34 points as Finland won the gold medal.

Puistola, drafted in the third round in 2019, has bounced around to four different Liiga teams since he was selected. His draft rights expire on June 1 of this year, after which he will be an unrestricted free agent.

The release from the team is below.

CANES ACQUIRE PULJUJARVI FROM OILERS
Carolina sends Puistola to Edmonton

Don Waddell, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has acquired forward Jesse Puljujarvi from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for forward Patrik Puistola.

“Jesse possesses a great blend of size and skill, and he will add to the depth of our forward group,” said Waddell. “He has familiarity with some of our other Finnish players, and we see him as a great fit for our team and locker room.”

Puljujarvi, 24, has tallied 14 points (5g, 9a) in 58 NHL games with Edmonton in 2022-23. The 6’4”, 201-pound winger has earned 112 points (51g, 61a) in 317 career NHL games with the Oilers and added five points (3g, 2a) in 20 career playoff games. Puljujarvi also played 163 Liiga games with Karpat from 2014-20, posting 110 points (50g, 60a) in Finland’s top professional league and serving as an alternate captain in 2020-21. Born in Alvkarleby, Sweden, Puljujarvi represents Finland internationally and has played at numerous international tournaments, including the IIHF World Junior Championship (2015, 2016) and IIHF World Championship (2017). He was named Best Forward at the 2016 World Juniors and helped Finland win a gold medal, posting a tournament-high 17 points (5g, 12a) in seven games on a line with Patrik Laine and Hurricanes forward Sebastian Aho. Puljujarvi was selected fourth overall by Edmonton in the 2016 NHL Draft.

Puistola, 22, has registered 38 points (15g, 23a) in 56 Liiga games with Jukurit this season. The 6’0”, 174-pound forward has tallied 89 points (41g, 48a) in 223 career Liiga games with Tappara, Jukurit, KooKoo and JYP. The Tampere, Finland, native was selected by Carolina in the third round, 73rd overall, of the 2019 NHL Draft.