An up-and-down rookie NHL season led to Puljujarvi finishing the year in the American Hockey League and then with Team Finland at the World Championships. As he continues to learn the language and the North American game, Puljujarvi now has a fellow Finn with 891 regular season games of NHL experience, and 54 in the playoffs, under his belt to help him.
"I remember when I was a young guy I came to the Dallas Stars and Jere Lehtinen was my roommate my first year I was able to learn from him what you have to do to be an NHL player," said Jokinen. "I learned how you have to train, how you have to play and carry yourself and stuff like that so I learned a lot from him."
Jokinen spoke with Oilers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Peter Chiarelli before signing about helping Puljujarvi along.
"I'm there any time he needs something," said Jokinen. "I think he'll be a great player for the Oilers for a long time. He's a young guy and it's not easy to come into the League but I'll do everything I can to help him grow as a player and person."
Jokinen said he already has experience helping one young Finn along in Florida's Aleksander Barkov.
In addition to a mentoring role, Jokinen can play. The 34-year-old veteran forward has 186 career goals and 546 points in 891 regular season games. He is one season removed from an 18-goal campaign in 2015-16.
"I had a really good talk with both Peter Chiarelli and Todd McLellan," said Jokinen. "They know what kind of player I am and what my strengths are and what I can bring to the team. I think I'll be playing all over the lineup wherever I'm needed. I take lots of pride in being good at faceoffs. I think that's one part I can help with. I take lots of pride in being a good player on the penalty kill and producing on the power play. I will be there wherever the coach thinks it's best for the team.
"I think my strengths are being a good, all-around player and how I think the game and being able to be more of a playmaker than scorer but I can score too and I'm a two-way player."
As for why Jokinen saw the Oilers as a good partnership, it was the optimism surrounding the club and their bright future that drew him in.
"It's really exciting," said Jokinen. "I think with how the Oilers played last season, it opened a lot of eyes across the League. They had a great year and I'm really honoured to be a part of the Oilers now. I feel the team is going in the right direction and I think in the next few years, every year now the Oilers have a really good chance to compete for a Stanley Cup so that's my goal to try to help the Oilers win a Stanley Cup."
And he's willing to do anything he can to help get them there.
