Red Wings prospect Eemil Viro is going to make his North American professional debut with the Grand Rapids Griffins this fall, but DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills notes that Viro already has a strong amount of professional experience:
At just 17 years old, Eemil Viro made his professional hockey debut with TPS Turku of the SM-Liiga, Finland’s most elite league. And when reflecting on his development, the young defenseman acknowledged he’s come a long way since his inaugural 2019-20 campaign.
“When I came into the league, I was really small,” said Viro, who was the Red Wings’ 70th overall pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. “A young guy finding the way on how to survive game to game.”
Now as a 20-year-old, Viro has used his experience as a foundation for helping him compete with confidence.
“I’m a pretty good skater,” he said. “I can play with my own strengths.”
The 6-foot, 165-pound blueliner earned three goals and four assists in 52 games last season, helping TPS to a league final berth.
“I think defensively, I got a lot better,” Viro said. “Our team played really well, got better and in the end, got to the finals.”
Continued; Viro is very wiry, so he may not get a lot “bigger,” but he’ll get stronger yet.
