Another Penguins prospects has been loaned to a team in Europe.
Goaltender Emil Larmi has joined HPK of Finland’s Liiga. According to a translated release from the team, Larmi will return to the Penguins when they open training camp.
Undrafted, the 24-year-old Larmi joined the Penguins by signing a two-year entry-level contract in June of 2019 then split the 2019-20 season between the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League and the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL.
With Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Larmi appeared in nine games and had a 2-3-4 record with a 3.55 goals against average and an .883 save percentage.
As a member of the Nailers, Larmi played in 11 games and had a 4-7-0 record with a 3.55 goals against average, a .908 save percentage and one shutout.
During the Penguins’ brief four-game appearance in the NHL’s postseason tournament, Larmi was included on the team’s roster.
A native of Finland, Larmi is the seventh prospect signed to an NHL contract that the Penguins have a loan agreement with to a European team. He joins:
• Niclas Almari, defensemen with Pelicans — Liiga (Finland)
• Kasper Bjorkqvist, left winger with KooKoo — Liiga (Finland)
• Jan Drozg, left winger with HK Olimpija Ljubjana — Alps Hockey League (Slovenia)
• Jesper Lindgren, defensemen with MODO — HockeyAllsvensken (Sweden)
• Cam Lee, defenseman with HC Slovan Bratislava — Slovakian Extraliga
• Radim Zohorona, left winger with BK Mlada Boleslav — ELH (Czech Republic)
Like most prospects, Larmi has not played a game since mid-March when leagues around the world halted play because of the coronavirus pandemic. His most recent game was a 5-1 home loss with the Nailers against the Reading Royals on March 10.
While the NHL and most leagues in North America have yet to open the 2020-21 season, leagues in Europe have been playing for several weeks. As a result, NHL teams have loaned prospects to European teams to gain much-needed playing experience.
The NHL has targeted Jan. 1 to open its 2020-21 season.
Larmi will join fellow Penguins prospect Valtteri Puustinen, a forward selected in the seventh round of the 2019 draft (No. 203 overall), with HPK.
