Jani Hakanpaa Fully Cleared From Knee Injury, Has Had NHL Interest This Summer

Despite seeing very little game action, last season was an eventful one for free agent defenseman Jani Hakanpaa.  He agreed to terms with Toronto on the opening day of free agency on a multi-year deal before his physical revealed concerns over his recovery from knee surgery.  Eventually, a revised one-year pact was agreed upon with the hope that he’d be able to return at some point in the season.

However, that return only lasted two games in November before he was sidelined once again, landing right back on LTIR.  But there was a chance he could have suited up in the playoffs as the 33-year-old told Ilta-Sanomat’s Ville Touru earlier this month that he had been cleared by team doctors to suit up if he was needed.  Now, he says he has been fully cleared and is looking to sign with an NHL team for the upcoming season.

When healthy, Hakanpaa has been an effective third-pairing blueliner while bringing plenty of physicality to the table.  Over his 290 career NHL appearances, he has 899 hits along with 45 points in 18 minutes a night of playing time.  As a big right-shot player, there would be a decent market for his services if teams feel he can legitimately step up and contribute.

Hakanpaa noted that he has had some calls this summer from NHL teams but that he wanted to wait a little to see how the market shook out first.  Whether that’s a sign that the offers weren’t to his liking or that he wanted to get a sense of where he might best fit remains to be seen.

Speculatively, given the injury trouble, he’s someone who stands out as a viable PTO candidate.  He isn’t eligible for a one-year deal with performance incentives as while he meets the requirement of being on IR for 100 days last season, he doesn’t meet the games played criterion of 400 NHL appearances.  But with Hakanpaa being healthy (or as healthy as he’s going to be following the surgery), he could be an intriguing pickup over the coming weeks.