A highly-touted Edmonton Oilers draft pick who has struggled to have an impact on the team since being drafted fourth overall in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft has signed a contract with a hockey team in Europe.
Jesse Puljujarvi, an unsigned restricted free agent, has signed a one-year deal with Oulun Kärpät in Finland. The development comes three months after the 21-year-old winger expressed to the Oilers that he wanted a fresh start outside the organization.
READ MORE: Jesse Puljujarvi wants Oilers to trade him; GM Ken Holland may not oblige
Puljujarvi played with Oulun Kärpät before he was drafted by the Oilers.
This summer, the Oilers tendered a qualifying offer to Puljujarvi. If the forward doesn’t agree to the offer by Dec. 1, he will not be eligible to play in the National Hockey League in the 2019-20 season.
Leon Draisaitl says he would welcome Puljujarvi back into the Oilers’ fold, and hopes the door hasn’t been slammed shut.
“You want guys to pan out and you want guys to help you on your team,” Draisaitl said Wednesday at the annual BioSteel camp.
“It seems like he doesn’t want to be on our team as of right now … maybe that changes.”
Listen below: Jesse Puljujarvi signing with a hockey team in Finland is discussed on 603 CHED’s Inside Sports with Reid Wilkins on Tuesday.
Choosing his words carefully, Draisaitl added he didn’t get the sense Puljujarvi was unhappy in Edmonton.
“He’s a young guy that obviously doesn’t feel like he wants to play for us anymore,” Draisaitl said. “I’ll leave it at that.”
In 139 regular-season games with the Oilers, Puljujarvi has scored 17 goals and accumulated 37 points.
Watch below: Some Global News videos about Jesse Puljujarvi.
With files from Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press.
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