'A unique experience for me' | Jokiharju soaks in 4 Nations Face-Off

Buffalo Sabres defenseman Henri Jokiharju, a late addition to Finland’s roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off, has relished his opportunity in the best-on-best tournament.

He’s averaged 17:36 of ice time between two games in Montreal: Thursday’s loss to the United States, in which he scored Finland’s only goal, and Saturday’s overtime victory versus Sweden.

"Overall, our back end has played good games," said Finland head coach Antti Pennanen. "Jokiharju – really solid. That’s my first thought when I think about him – really solid. And he’s playing with Olli Maatta, so Olli can support him a lot. So, really solid."

The tournament now shifts to Boston’s TD Garden, where Monday at 1 p.m. on TNT, Finland can secure a trip to Thursday’s championship game with a regulation win over Canada.

Ahead of the crucial matchup, Jokiharju sat down with Sabres.com to discuss his 4 Nations experience through two games, Finnish hockey idols and the keys to competing with Canada.

• Read: Jokiharju, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Rasmus Dahlin compete in the 4 Nations Face-Off

How has this experience – the intensity, the competitiveness, the feeling of representing your country – compared to your expectations?

It’s kind of what I expected. It’s really fast out there, obviously. I’ve been enjoying every second of [the] time I have here. It’s been really fun. A unique experience for me.

Is the speed the biggest adjustment from regular season games?

The speed on the ice, and every player is just so smart. So all the little details matter out there.

You had a couple practices before the tournament. What’s the challenge of adjusting to new teammates, some of whom you’ve never played with before?

It’s not the easiest. You come to midseason, and you have a new D pair, new combinations and forward lines.

But it helps a lot that we speak the same language out there – you don’t have to think about (speaking English) that much. So I think it helps a lot that we can speak Finnish. It’s so much fun. You don’t have to think about what English word you’re gonna say. Just talk and be yourself.

How does this compare to your experiences at World Juniors and the World Championship in 2019?

I think the intensity’s way up. And the overall experience – lots of hype around it, so it’s really good. It’s ranked [number] one.

Are a lot of people watching you back home? Is this a popular event in Finland?

Yeah, it is. Especially (because) we have 1 o'clock games in these early ones, it’s popular and they follow pretty close.

Is there a Finnish teammate it’s been cool to play with for the first time?

For sure – like all the superstars we have up front, but also my D partner Olli Maatta. I’ve learned so much playing with him. He’s a great guy and a really good D partner for me.

It’s huge, the experience he has. What he had to do in these kind of games – that guy has a couple Stanley Cups already. That experience, it’s massive. So playing with him is one of the best things to happen to me.

Who are some Finnish players you watched on the international stage and admired while growing up?

Mikael Granlund, who scored the overtime winner last night – really looking up to him, like always, and other guys as well.

Back in the day, Sami Vatanen was that kind of guy – I really watched and looked up to him. And Kimmo Timonen. So most of the defensemen.

A lot is made of the Finland-Sweden rivalry. What does that mean to you?

It’s a pride thing. You definitely do not want to lose to them. Obviously you want to win every game, but that game means a little bit more for Finnish people.

What was it like facing Rasmus Dahlin on Saturday?

It was fun. Especially to win the game. He got a goal, but we got the win, so it was good [from] my standpoint.

How would you evaluate your and the team’s performance through two games?

I think team-wise, we’re in a good spot. It’s kind of like a semifinal, what we’re playing here. We got ourselves in a pretty good spot, so we’ve just got to keep working on our game and be kind of ballsy against Canada.

My own game? Just try and do my best every shift out there. I’m just enjoying my time here.

What’s different about playing Canada? What gives you confidence you can beat them?

They have a couple fast skaters out there, so I think that’s the difference (in) what they’re going to bring, [from] U.S. and Sweden. But I think overall it’s probably gonna be the same intensity, and the speed, other than those couple guys, it’s gonna be pretty [similar]… Their best guys – try and take them out of the game.

Just make sure that we don’t give them any 3-on-2s, 4-on-2s. I think that’s really the key for the game.

We’ve just got to play really good as a team, as a five-man unit. If we stick together, I think that’s our weapon.