Draft Retrospective: Kaapo Kakko and the challenges of delivering on promise

Kaapo Kakko was, and still is, one of the best Finnish prospects. 

Already having been a key contributor in Finland taking home gold from the Under-18 Worlds in 2018, he put together one of the strongest draft-eligible campaigns in Liiga's history. Kakko added 38 points in 45 regular season appearances, a mark that has only been topped by Alexander Barkov, Olli Jokinen, and Mikael Granlund.

He completely took over defences, repeatedly cutting back and dancing around them before making a move toward the middle. Only a handful were able to keep up with the information load he imposed on his opponents once his line got set up in-zone.

Kakko also continued to bolster his international resume, playing at both Under-20 and Men's World Championships, being a top-four point producer on both teams and