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| NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman & Oliver Suvanto (r) |
From our friends at the Washington Capitals...
Caps Land Center Suvanto in First Round of 2026 NHL Draft
Caps draft Oliver Suvanto, a big, physical two-way center from Finland
After making a lot of big moves earlier in the week, the Caps sat tight with the 18th overall pick in the first round, and they used it to draft one of the youngest players in the 2026 NHL Draft, Finnish center Oliver Suvanto.
Last season, Suvanto played for Tappara Tampare in Finland’s SM-liiga, the country’s top professional ice hockey league, totaling two goals and nine assists for 11 points in 48 games. His point total was the highest among all skaters aged 17 or younger in SM-liiga last season, where he adjusted quickly to the pace of the pro game. He also scored a pair of goals in seven games at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship, where he was named one of Finland’s top three players.
The NHL’s Central Scouting Bureau ranked Suvanto first among all international centers, and third among all international skaters. At 17 years of age – he doesn’t turn 18 until Sept. 3 – Suvanto is already equipped with an NHL body; he stands 6-foot-3 and tips the scales at 213 ponds.
Suvanto also benefits from some hockey pedigree. His father Harri skated 13 seasons in SM-liiga, and he also played professionally in Sweden, Slovakia and Germany late in his career.
“I would say I’m a two-way player,” says Suvanto. “I try to be responsible in the defensive zone and try to create also in the offensive zone. I’m a big guy; I can battle, win the puck, and I like protecting the puck in the offensive zone.”
Suvanto’s game and playing style has drawn some comparisons to that of Florida captain Aleksander Barkov, and he has had the opportunity to meet with Barkov and to share the ice with him in a casual setting.
“About Barkov, it’s a big honor to be compared to that kind of player,” says Suvanto. “Such a complete player, a two-way player; I can see some similarities with me. And two Stanley Cups as a captain, especially what a guy, a great leader, great idol for a young kid.”
At the age of 17, Suvanto plays a detailed game. He plays physically and wins battles against older players, plays strong on the walls, and is already solid on the dot. His hockey sense is solid, and he believes he needs to improve his shot and his scoring touch around the net.
“First of all, I want to improve a lot in my offensiveness,” he says. “I want to be a bigger threat in there, I want to create more. I know I’m maybe not the point maker guy, or the leading goal scorer like there is a bunch of guys on the Capitals already, but I’m trying to be a complete player, a two-way player, but I would like to be more offensive minded.”
The scouting reports see him similarly to how he sees himself, as a competitive, physical player. He sees the ice well, can make plays and is a responsible two-way player, which is how he was able to have success at such a young age in one of Europe’s top leagues.
If Suvanto is successful at honing and expanding his offensive game, he has potential as a middle six pivot in the NHL. And even if his offense doesn’t rise to the level of the rest of his game, he brings enough to the table and has enough attributes that he is expected to have a solid career as a bottom-six center.
Away from the rink, Suvanto characterizes himself as a big music fan and he enjoys playing the drums. As we walked through the event level of Key Bank Center on Friday night, he told me he is a fan of all types of music, and he named Drake and the Red Hot Chili Peppers as a couple of his favorites
Suvanto is an outgoing young man with an ebullient personality.
“Usually Finns are a little quieter, but I’m an outgoing guy, I like to talk, I’m social,” he says. “I think that life is not that serious; you’ve got to enjoy the moment and get to know people. I think when you get to know – for example – Barkov better, he’s not the quietest in the room, but maybe it seems like it in the media. Obviously, he’s a great leader and he leads by that.”
For whatever reason, the Caps haven’t had many Finns in their lineup over the years. Suvanto is the first Finn the Caps have drafted since Oskar Osala in the fourth round of the 2006 Draft, which took place 20 years ago Wednesday. The last Finn Washington drafted in the first round was the late Miika Elomo, who was chosen 23rd overall in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft.
A total of eight Finnish players have played for the Caps over the years, led by defenseman Timo Blomqvist, a fifth-round pick in the 1980 NHL Entry Draft who logged 223 of his 243 NHL games with the Capitals across a five-year career. Only seven other Finns have suited up for the Caps, and those seven skaters have combined to play fewer than half as many games as Blomqvist, a combined total of 107 regular season contests.
Suvanto had a sense the Caps might take him; he thought Washington might be his destination after a strong interview at the 2026 Draft combine in Buffalo a few weeks back. As you’d expect, he was excited to hear the Caps call his name, and he’s pumped about making his first ever trip to DC later this weekend when he heads to the nation’s capital for next week’s summer development camp.
“I’m very excited to join the Capitals,” he says. “I watched quite a bit of them, obviously because of Alexander Ovechkin, the greatest goal scorer of all time. I think they’ve got a good thing going on and I’m very excited to join them.”
And Suvanto is determined to do much more than just join the Capitals.
“I like to win, I love to win, I like to compete,” he says. “The goal is to win the Stanley Cup someday, so hopefully it happens.”
