A handful of key NHL players have been sidelined with an injury at the 2026 Olympics. Another player has been added to that list as Lejionat’s Jaakko Pertilla reported that Finnish winger Mikko Rantanen was scratched for the Bronze Medal Game against Slovakia due to a lower-body injury.
Rantanen was a full participant in Saturday’s semi-final matchup against Canada. He scored the opening goal of the game and logged 16:09 of ice time in 25 shifts. The 29-year-old came into today’s game as Finland’s leading scorer with two goals and four assists in five games with an ATOI of 18:14.
Of course, this is significant news for Rantanen’s NHL team as well as the veteran is the leading scorer for the Stars this season. In 54 games, he has 20 goals and 49 assists while averaging more than 20 minutes a night of playing time. Any absence from NHL games would be significant.
To that end, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that the injury occurred in the third period on Saturday and is not considered to be season-ending. He’s expected to be evaluated when he returns to Dallas to determine the exact severity and how much time he could miss.
Taking Rantanen’s spot on Finland’s top line is Oliver Kapanen, who has been scratched for three games and dressed as the 13th forward without seeing the ice in the other two. Meanwhile, Eeli Tolvanen will return to the lineup after being healthy-scratched versus Canada.