It's a date the 21-year-old forward has been anticipating since the Canadiens announced Sept. 4 they would not match the one-year, $6,100,015 offer sheet the Hurricanes tendered to the restricted free agent Aug. 28.
"For sure, that was one game on my schedule that I looked up," Kotkaniemi said Tuesday. "It will be fun there to see old teammates, some fans there. I think it will be a blast."
He didn't have to wait long for his return to Montreal. It comes in Carolina's third game of the season following victories against the New York Islanders on Thursday and at the Nashville Predators on Saturday.
Kotkaniemi said he's still adjusting to life in a new city and shifting from center to left wing. He has no points in his first two games with the Hurricanes but said he's enjoying the change so far.
"It's been really great," he said. "It's a great spot. The guys are really great here. The whole team is working really hard, and you can see that on the ice. It's great to be part of that kind of team."
Kotkaniemi scored 62 points (22 goals, 40 assists) in 171 games and 12 points (nine goals, three assists) in 29 Stanley Cup Playoff games in three seasons for the Canadiens, who selected him with the No. 3 pick in the 2018 NHL Draft. He scored 20 points (five goals, 15 assists) in 56 games and eight points (five goals, three assists) in 19 playoff games during Montreal's run to the Stanley Cup Final last season.
But after being a healthy scratch for the last two games of the Canadiens' five-game loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the best-of-7 Cup Final, Kotkaniemi became a restricted free agent and decided to accept Carolina's offer. He said that left him with "two good options," either the Canadiens would match the offer sheet and he'd continue to play for them, or he'd begin a new chapter with the Hurricanes.
Montreal decided not to match and received a first-round pick and a third-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft from Carolina as compensation.
"So I think it ended up pretty well," Kotkaniemi said. "I'm really happy here and it's been extremely fun here."
That doesn't mean Kotkaniemi would have been unhappy remaining in Montreal, though.
"I have really good memories from there," he said. "I'm so grateful that they drafted me and gave me a chance. It was a great spot to play for three years. Everyone knows they've got unbelievable fans, great teammates. I couldn't wish any better way to start my NHL career. It was great."
Whether the Canadiens' fans will understand that or boo him when he returns Thursday is up to them.
"I just did what was best for me at the moment," Kotkaniemi said. "So I feel everyone can do whatever they want."
After reaching the Cup Final with Montreal last season, Kotkaniemi sees an opportunity to take another step with Carolina. Despite finishing first in the eight-team Discover Central Division, the Hurricanes retooled their supporting cast in hope of having better success in the playoffs after a five-game loss to the Lightning in the Stanley Cup Second Round.
In addition to Kotkaniemi, Carolina added goalies Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta, defensemen Ian Cole, Ethan Bear, Tony DeAngelo and Brendan Smith and forwards Derek Stepan and
Josh Leivo
. The past two days, Kotkaniemi has practiced on the top line with fellow Finland natives Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen.
"I really like it here. They're a great team," Kotkaniemi said. "We don't really have one, two, three or fourth line. We've got just four really good lines. So even if you're just in the lineup, that's a really good thing. It's a really hard competition over here. Just you do your best every day and try to fit in."
Kotkamiemi can become a restricted free agent again after this season, but he said he hopes to remain with the Hurricanes long term.
"I would definitely not mind that," he said. "Like I said, it's a really hard-working group here. It's really good here. Everyone wants to get forward and win the Stanley Cup. That's the main thing here, for sure."
