Penguins A to Z: Emil Larmi will remain in Finland, for now
As the NHL prepares for a new season scheduled to start in mid-January, the Tribune-Review will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 48 individuals under NHL contract with the organization, from mid-level prospect Niclas Almari to high-profile trade acquisition Jason Zucker.
Emil Larmi
Position: Goaltender
Catches: Left
Age: 24
Height: 6-foot
Weight: 185 pounds
2019-20 AHL statistics: Nine games, 2-3-4 record, 3.55 goals-against average, .883 save percentage, zero shutouts
2019-20 ECHL statistics: 11 games, 4-7-0 record, 3.55 goals against average, .908 save percentage, one shutout
2020-21 Liiga statistics: Nine games, 1-2-6 record, 2.69 goals against average, .880 save percentage, zero shutouts
Contract: Second year of a two-year entry-level contract with a salary cap hit of $792,500. Pending restricted free agent in 2021
Acquired: Unrestricted free agent signing, June 2, 2019
Last season: A native of Finland, Larmi got his first taste of North American hockey in 2019-20. It was hardly a smooth experience.
Shuffled between Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League and the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL (and even the NHL for one strange day), Larmi played only 20 games combined last season.
Larmi had a health scare early in his North American debut. On Oct. 26, 2019, he passed out in the dressing room during the second intermission of an AHL game and was sidelined for approximately three weeks due to an undisclosed health condition.
In December, Larmi was shuttled between Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Wheeling twice then, on Jan. 4, he was recalled to the NHL club when goaltender Casey DeSmith was unable to locate his passport after his own recall. That prompted management to summon Larmi for the team’s game that day in Montreal to serve as a backup to starter Matt Murray.
Assigned from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to Wheeling once more in February, Larmi was on the Nailers’ roster by the time most hockey leagues in the world had shut down in mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
When the Penguins traveled to Toronto to participate in the NHL’s postseason tournament, Larmi was included on their expanded roster but did not play in a game.
This season: In order to get Larmi some much-needed playing time, the Penguins loaned him to HPK in Finland’s Liiga on Oct. 22. His only win this season came in his debut, a 4-1 home win against HIFK on Oct. 30 in which he made 29 saves.
Having led that team to the Liiga’s Kanada-malja championship in 2018-19, Larmi was returning to a familiar place, but he hasn’t enjoyed the same success, winning only one of his nine games for a squad that sits in last place of a 15-team league.
The future: General manager Jim Rutherford indicated Larmi will remain in Finland for the time being due to the medical protocols surrounding the coronavirus, namely the time required to quarantine. Should the AHL open its season on Feb. 5 as hoped, Larmi could return to this continent and compete with the likes of AHL veteran Shane Starrett for the starting job.
Regardless of where he’s playing, he needs to actually play. Over the past 14 months, he’s played in only 29 games spread out over three leagues (and two continents).
Larmi offers plenty of intrigue and potential, but he hasn’t put much of it on display since he joined the Penguins.
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
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