Oilers goaltender Mikko Koskinen announces new role in hockey after retirement

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Liam McCormick
August 27, 2024 (6:12 PM)

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At 36 years old, former Oilers goaltender Mikko Koskinen officially announced his retirement from professional hockey this offseason, and revealed the next chapter in his life.

According to Ilta Sanomat, a news source in Finland, the recently retired goalie will become a player agent in Liiga, the top league in Koskinen's home country. Unless he represents a young prospect that makes his way to the NHL, it's likely that Koskinen only works in Finland from now on.

Koskinen had a unique journey to becoming the Oilers starting goalie in the late stages of his career. Drafted by the New York Islanders in the second round in 2009, Koskinen only played 4 games with the Islanders and a handful in the AHL before leaving to play in Europe. He then played 6 seasons in the KHL, winning the Gagarin Cup twice, before returning to the NHL with the Oilers on a one year contract in 2018.

After a successful start to his tenure with the Oilers, the team quickly signed him to a two year contract extension - but unfortunately that didn't pan out. Koskinen lost the starter's crease in the 2020-21 season, and played just one more year with the Oilers before heading to Sweden for two more years before retirement. In 168 career NHL games, Koskinen has 85 wins, a .906 save percentage, and a 3.01 goals against average. For a goaltender that was pretty much league average, he took some serious flak from fans and media in his time in Edmonton for his $4.5M salary cap hit being too high. Still, fans will wish him the best in his next chapter as player agent.

Source for Koskinen stats: PuckPedia - Mikko Koskinen