Waltteri Merelä (born 6 July 1998) is a Finnish professional ice hockey player. He is currently playing for SC Bern of the National League (NL).
| Waltteri Merelä | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
6 July 1998 Ylöjärvi, Finland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
| Weight | 196 lb (89 kg; 14 st 0 lb) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| NL team Former teams |
SC Bern Pelicans Tappara Tampa Bay Lightning | ||
| National team |
 Finland | ||
| NHL draft | Undrafted | ||
| Playing career | 2018–present | ||
Playing career
editMerelä made his SM-liiga debut appearance for Pelicans during the 2018–19 season. In December 2021, he made his debut in the Finland men's national ice hockey team.[1]
As an undrafted free agent, on 5 June 2023, Merelä left the SM-liiga after 5 seasons by signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.[2] Merelä made the opening night roster to begin the 2023–24 season with the Lightning. He made 19 appearances with Tampa Bay over the course of the season, while also splitting the campaign with AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, posting 34 points through 54 regular season games.
At the conclusion of the season, Merelä opted to leave the Lightning and returned to Europe in signing a one-year contract with Swiss club, SC Bern of the NL, on 10 June 2024.[3]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2016–17 | Tappara | Jr. A | 30 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18 | Tappara | Jr. A | 36 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 10 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | ||
| 2018–19 | Lahti Pelicans | Jr. A | 32 | 22 | 32 | 54 | 67 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 12 | ||
| 2018–19 | Lahti Pelicans | Liiga | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2018–19 | Peliitat | Mestis | 9 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Lahti Pelicans | Liiga | 48 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Lahti Pelicans | Jr. A | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2019–20 | Peliitat | Mestis | 10 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Lahti Pelicans | Liiga | 57 | 10 | 17 | 27 | 55 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 2021–22 | Tappara | Liiga | 57 | 21 | 23 | 44 | 38 | 15 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 8 | ||
| 2022–23 | Tappara | Liiga | 41 | 15 | 18 | 33 | 47 | 14 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 4 | ||
| 2023–24 | Tampa Bay Lightning | NHL | 19 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2023–24 | Syracuse Crunch | AHL | 55 | 15 | 19 | 34 | 16 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | ||
| Liiga totals | 212 | 53 | 70 | 123 | 156 | 34 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 16 | ||||
| NHL totals | 19 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
International
edit| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Finland | WC | 7th | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Senior totals | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||
References
edit- ^ "Leijonat - Tulospalvelu". leijonat.fi. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
- ^ "Lightning sign forward Merelä to one-year, two-way contract". Tampa Bay Lightning. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
- ^ "Bern sign Waltteri Merela" (in German). SC Bern. 10 June 2024. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
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