Kraken prospect Julius Miettinen and his Everett Silvertips teammates are off to a fast start in the Western Hockey League, winning nine of their first 11 games to stand atop the Western Conference going into Friday’s home matchup against the Edmonton Oil Kings. The 2024 second-round draft choice attributes the red-hot record to new head coach Steve Hamilton.
“I think our new coach brought a lot of energy to this team,” said Miettinen. “The guys are just fitting perfectly together. Everybody is friends together. That translates to hockey. There is a looseness.”
That works out well for Miettinen because his new coach admires the 6-foot-3, 205-pound centerman’s demeanor with its mix of light-heartedness and the drive to become an NHL player.
“He's an easy-going guy,” said Hamilton, who joined the Silvertips after six seasons and a 165-152-40 record as head coach of WHL Calgary. “Jules has a good sense of humor. And he's starting to realize his dreams are within his reach. Sometimes, it doesn’t become real until the player experiences an NHL training camp. You start playing for your future. We’re going to be the beneficiaries of that motivation.”
Miettinen impressed at the Kraken’s training camp and the 2024 Rookie Faceoff tournament in Los Angeles, where he earned a second start after a stellar first game in the tourney.
Adapting to Being Far from Home, Smaller Rink Size
While new coach Hamilton appreciates Miettinen’s sense of humor, the Finland native was dead-on serious about adjusting to both a new country and North America’s smaller rink size when he arrived in Everett last fall after previously competing in Finland’s U20 league. At 17, Miettinen knew little English, something not apparent during our conversation last Friday after practice and before the team left for Portland to post a victory after 16 straight road losses at the Winterhawks arena.
“It was my first time leaving home and being far, far away, a 10-hour difference,” said Miettinen. “You learn English the hard way; you just have to learn it. The guys, of course, helped me a lot. Sometimes we joked about how I was speaking, but that’s just part of it.”
Though he is modest about his linguistic skills, Miettinen did allow that his road trip conversations are more robust this season. Everett opened the season with three home games, then embarked on a six-game road trip that started with two games in Saskatchewan (Prince Albert and Saskatoon), then a matchup in Manitoba (Brandon) before traversing back to Saskatchewan for three more contests (Regina, Moose Jaw, Swift Current). They racked up five wins and plenty of team bonding moments.
“You’re sitting on the bus, I’d say, for 16 hours at times,” said Miettinen, flashing a toothy grin that makes everyone around him smile, too. “So, yeah, it's a long time. You get to know people pretty well. Then at the hotel, you’ve got different roommates. You get to bond with them. Last fall, I could understand English a little bit, but the speaking was hard. Not now. It’s good.”
Leaving his parents – he’s an only child – was tough, too, last season. He still calls twice a day: “When I wake before coming to the rink, have a little chat with them, then I call again maybe an hour before I go to bed.”
