(WGR 550) - The website Iltalehti is reporting that the Sabres have come to an agreement with European free agent center Arttu Ruotsalainen. Ruotsalainen won't be playing with Team Finland at the IIHF World Championship.
I translated the article as best I could, and I think that since he has a contract with Ilves through 2022, he must go back to them if he doesn't make the Sabres. That is similar to the deal Victor Antipin had. He couldn't go to Rochester. If he didn't make the Sabres, he had to go back to Russia. I thought that hurt Antipin quite a bit as he wasn't really ready for the NHL.
At 5' 8", Ruotsalainen is very undersized. He was 18th in league scoring for Ilves, netting 21 goals and 21 assists for 42 points in 59 games. He also had seven points in seven playoff games.
This is the first season Ruotsalainen has put up numbers as he had nine goals and 11 assists for 20 points in 60 games the year before.
Ruotsalainen will be 22 by the end of October.
