AHL: Joni Jurmo Signs Overseas

6’4″ Defenseman Joni Jurmo has officially signed back home in Finland with Kiekko-Espoo in Liiga. The 2025-26 season will not be Jurmo’s first season playing in Liiga as he played with JYP in the 2020-21 season, Jukurit in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons, Ilves and KooKoo in the 2023-24 season. During his four seasons in Liiga, Jurmo played in 168 games where he had eight goals and 20 assists for 28 points with 109 penalty minutes and a -2.

Joni Jurmo was a 2020 third-round draft pick by the Vancouver Canucks, going 82nd overall. Jurmo was then traded to the Calgary Flames and signed with the Flames in March 2024. After spending the majority of his career back home in Finland, Jurmo came over to North America for the 2024-25 season, splitting his time between the Calgary Wranglers in the AHL and the Rapid City Rush in the ECHL.

With the Wranglers, Jurmo played in 17 games, during which he did not register a point and had four penalty minutes. In 12 games with the Rush, Jurmo had two goals and eight assists for ten points with four penalty minutes and a +2. After the 2024-25 season, the Flames decided to place Jurmo on waivers, eventually buying out his contract.

Jurmo is a defenseman with a lot of size, and he is not afraid to utilize it. He is able to use his size and speed to move up and down the ice very quickly, making it look effortless. Jurmo also possesses some offensive power, as he is able to find ways to get pucks on net, whether it’s scoring a goal or getting the puck to the front of the net for a teammate to score.