Rasmus Ristolainen
Finnish ice hockey player (born 1994)
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Rasmus Ristolainen (born 27 October 1994) is a Finnish professional ice hockey player who is a defenceman for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected eighth overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2013 NHL entry draft.[1][2]
| Rasmus Ristolainen | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Ristolainen with the Buffalo Sabres in 2016 | |||
| Born |
27 October 1994 Turku, Finland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) | ||
| Weight | 215 lb (98 kg; 15 st 5 lb) | ||
| Position | Defence | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| NHL team Former teams |
Philadelphia Flyers TPS Buffalo Sabres | ||
| National team |
 Finland | ||
| NHL draft |
8th overall, 2013 Buffalo Sabres | ||
| Playing career | 2011–present | ||
Playing career
Ristolainen made his NHL debut with the Buffalo Sabres on the opening night of the 2013–14 season, on 2 October 2013, against the Detroit Red Wings. He scored his first career NHL goal on 25 October, in a 3–1 win over the Florida Panthers.[3] He scored his first NHL hat-trick on 10 December 2015, in a 4–3 loss against the Calgary Flames.[4] In doing so, he became the first Sabres' defenceman to score a hat-trick since Hockey Hall of Famer Phil Housley did so in the 1987–88 season.[5]
On 21 March 2017, Ristolainen delivered a check to Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jake Guentzel. Guentzel suffered a concussion on the play, and Ristolainen was given a three-game suspension for interference by the league.[6]
On 23 July 2021, Ristolainen was traded by the Sabres to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for Robert Hägg, a 2021 first-round pick and a 2023 second-round pick.[7] On 10 March 2022, he signed a five-year contract extension with the Flyers.[8]
International play
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ice hockey | ||
| Representing Finland | ||
| Olympic Games | ||
 | 2026 Milano Cortina | |
| World Junior Championships | ||
 | 2014 Malmö | |
On 5 January 2014, Ristolainen scored the overtime winner in the final of the 2014 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships against previously undefeated Sweden, giving Finland the gold medal.[citation needed]
Ristolainen represented Finland at the 2026 Winter Olympics and won a bronze medal.[9]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2009–10 | TPS | FIN U18 | 24 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 2009–10 | TPS | FIN U20 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | TPS | FIN U18 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 13 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 8 | ||
| 2010–11 | TPS | FIN U20 | 27 | 0 | 12 | 12 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | TPS | SM-l | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | TPS | FIN U20 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | TPS | SM-l | 40 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 78 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | TPS | SM-l | 52 | 3 | 12 | 15 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | TPS | FIN U20 | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 2013–14 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 34 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 22 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 2013–14 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 34 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 78 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 82 | 9 | 32 | 41 | 33 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 79 | 6 | 39 | 45 | 58 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 73 | 6 | 35 | 41 | 48 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 78 | 5 | 38 | 43 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 69 | 6 | 27 | 33 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 49 | 4 | 14 | 18 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2021–22 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 66 | 2 | 14 | 16 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2022–23 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 74 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2023–24 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 31 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2024–25 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 63 | 4 | 15 | 19 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2025–26 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 44 | 1 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 20 | ||
| Liiga totals | 93 | 6 | 17 | 23 | 110 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| NHL totals | 820 | 57 | 261 | 318 | 399 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 20 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Finland | U17 | 10th | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
| 2011 | Finland | U17 | 7th | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2011 | Finland | IH18 | 4th | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 10 | |
| 2012 | Finland | WJC | 4th | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2012 | Finland | WJC18 | 4th | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 10 | |
| 2013 | Finland | WJC | 7th | 6 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 20 | |
| 2014 | Finland | WJC |  |
5 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 8 | |
| 2016 | Finland | WCH | 8th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2026 | Finland | OG |  |
6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | |
| Junior totals | 40 | 9 | 12 | 21 | 56 | ||||
| Senior totals | 9 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | ||||
