Former Kemppainen Teammate Spang Says Bruins Are Getting A Well-Rounded Centerman
BOSTON (CBS) -- Joonas Kemppainen, who signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Bruins on Thursday, made an explosive first impression on defenseman Dan Spang in 2014.
Spang, a Winchester native and former Boston University star, was playing for SaiPa Lappeenranta in the Finnish Elite League when he and his teammates were matched up with Oulun Kärpät in the playoffs.
Spang recalled on Friday how SaiPa was prepared at the outset of the series to focus on star forwards Juhamatti Aaltonen and Ben Maxwell, and defenseman Lasse Kukkonen. Then when the series started, SaiPa found out it had a lot more to contend with from Kärpät.
"We get into the series and we're doing OK. But they've got this one line that [Kemppainen] was on, with that kid [Joonas] Donskoi, who just signed in San Jose, and these kids have the puck in our zone the whole shift, every shift they were on the ice," Spang said. "They're protecting pucks, they're making all these passes to each other and it's just like 'who are these guys?' They were definitely coming into their own that year. We're sitting there [worried] about all these other guys who are big names, and we're like 'who are these guys?'"
Kärpät won the series and the league championship. Kärpät won the title again this season, but this time Spang got to be on the right side of the victory and a teammate of Kemppainen, who had 32 points in 59 games. Spang said Kärpät was practically carried to the championship by Kemppainen and Donskoi.
In addition to being a pro player, Spang is a Bruins fan. And he's convinced his former Kärpät teammate will be a great addition to Boston's lineup.
"He's a really good player and I think one of the things that's so valuable about him is that he's not a young guy," Spang said about the 27-year-old. "He's a player that kind of found his game and has definitely gotten better and better every year. He seemed to find his game at a right time. He's a guy that can come and play in the Bruins organization that is a very fine-tuned player, where it's not like you're bringing in a young guy that's all offense. He's a guy that he's a very responsible. He doesn't make mistakes out there. You don't have to worry about him defensively or anything like that. He's not sacrificing any defense to play offense. He was probably our best defensive forward all year and he was also one of our top-two best offensive forwards. So I think that's really big for any guy who's trying to get into the NHL.
"You don't have to worry about him on the defensive end. He's a good centerman, he's always in the right position. He's a good faceoff guy, he blocks shots and I think the Bruins are getting a really good player."
That description of Kemppainen's two-way game will be music to the ears of general manager Don Sweeney and coach Claude Julien, assuming Julien sticks around to coach the 6-foot-2, 213-pound Finn. It should also please Bruins fans to know that a team strapped for salary-cap room just added a veteran player with championship experience who could serve the team in several roles for less than a million dollars. He might not do enough to replace Carl Soderberg as the third-line center, but he's clearly an upgrade on Gregory Campbell on the fourth line. Even if Kemppainen's offensive game doesn't translate to North America right off the bat, the other areas of his game will make him a player the Bruins can trust.
Sweeney still has a lot of work to do to revamp the Bruins' roster. But his first move has at least added depth that can pay off both with Kemppainen producing and creating competition.
"I'm sure it's just a matter of how much opportunity he has coming into camp and personally I think he's a player I'd want to just keep from the Bruins at the start and let him find his game in the NHL rather than be that guy who's up and down with Providence," Spang said. "That's a whole different ballgame when you're doing that. It's tough to find your comfort level when you're going up and down. But I think that since he's a little bit older, he's pretty responsible defensively, I think if he gets a good shot he's a guy that can stick there and be really a calming influence on the third or fourth line in Boston."
Matt Kalman covers the Bruins for CBSBoston.com and also contributes to NHL.com and several other media outlets. Follow him on Twitter @TheBruinsBlog.
