Team USA Blue beat Finland 4-1 at the World Junior Summer Showcase on Monday.
There were no Red Wings prospects participating in that game, so I chose to speak with undrafted Finland forward Tommi Mannisto. Mannisto, a 6,’ 192-pound left wing, grew up in the Tappara Tampere organization, but he’s a Michigan State University commit at 19 years of age.
We spoke about his decision-making process in terms of going the “college route,” we discussed the strengths of his game, the fact that he’s already been in East Lansing training with his incoming MSU compatriots, and the fact that he happens to be roommates with Red Wings prospect goaltender Trey Augustine, against whom Mannisto scored a goal on Saturday.
The affable young Finn was very nice in speaking with a complete stranger for the first time (me) about several topics that he wasn’t familiar with, and I wanted to share our short conversation with you:
The World Junior Summer Showcase isn’t all about Red Wings prospects, though that’s certainly my focus. It’s also about finding players who catch your eye who might be undrafted, and beginning to follow them as well.
They usually land in professional hockey players’ skates, so it’s neat to get to know them and follow their journeys.
