Can Rasmus Kumpulainen bounce back from his rough rookie season at Iowa? -Minnesota Wild

It was a season full of growth and growing pains for the Minnesota Wild prospects. Business as usual, really. But every season also brings its own circumstances. The way players adapt and grow within their environment can go a long way in determining their viability as NHL prospects and therefore the future of their professional careers.

That was especially true for Wild prospects who spent this season in the AHL, as they found themselves on a struggling team with a depleted roster, thanks to the significant injury woes that once again plagued the NHL club.

I watched a lot of Iowa Wild games this year, made my annual road trip to see a home series and also went to Des Moines to cover the team’s final two games of the season. All of this allowed me to observe and document the growth, difficulties, and progress players encountered throughout their entire professional season, some for the first time.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll write about each of the Wild’s prospects who spent this season in Iowa, discussing what went well, what didn’t, and where they go from here.

Stands first Rasmus Kumpulainena 2023 second-round pick from Lahti, Finland.

Kumpulainen is only 20 years old and won’t turn 21 until August. He played Major Junior for Oshawa in the Ontario Hockey League for a year, and played professionally last season for Pelicans in Liiga, Finland’s top professional league. He started this season as a promising, big-bodied center who emerged as a potential bottom-six power forward capable of impacting the game in all three zones.

However, the 2025-2026 campaign presented a whole new challenge for Kumpulainen. He made the significant jump to the AHL, where the Wild hoped he could establish himself as a legitimate prospect and an important part of the organization’s future.

It didn’t quite work that way. Instead, Kumpulainen’s long-term prospects became a bit bleaker.

Season overview by Rasmus Kumpulainen

This season has been an eye-opener for the 6-foot-4 Kumpulainen, who has had a difficult transition to professional hockey in North America. The rookie struggled with decision-making and the unforgiving nature of the AHL. It’s a tough competition for most players, especially 20-year-olds.

Kumpulainen split this season between the AHL and ECHL. The Iowa Wild deployed him in the middle six to start the season, where he slid between center and wing. It was an indication that the organization had high expectations for his development this season and wanted to put him in a position to succeed. They even elevated him above Caedan Bankier at times, and it initially looked like the two would remain in direct competition for minutes.

That didn’t last long. The same problems that surfaced last season and again at the Tom Kurvers Prospect Showcase in September ultimately plagued the Finn for much of the season: a struggle to be decisive with the puck and a tendency to turn it over in bad spots. This, coupled with the difficulty of adapting to the mutual responsibilities and assignments that professional strikers are expected to take on, made it a tough season for the youngster.

Kumpulainen brought several strengths to North America. He can move through the neutral zone and create controlled entries, has a knack for holding the puck and shaking off defenders, and has a tough, if not overly physical, defensively aware game that suggests a potential two-way force. However, these strengths haven’t been on display often in Iowa this season.

His confidence visibly decreased in the first half. He looked very much like a player who is still growing into his body and figuring out what it means to play in a physical, intense competition against grown men.

Kumpulainen struggled out of the gate and never really found his footing. He produced just two assists in 25 AHL games. His rocky start culminated in a tough night against Grand Rapids, the AHL’s top season team, on December 19.

Multiple turnovers, misplays and poor reads by Kumpulainen in the first ten minutes of the game directly contributed to two goals conceded for Iowa, which was defeated 6-2. While it was a tough game for Iowa as a whole, it also epitomized the struggles Kumpulainen experienced early in his AHL career.

That game on December 19 was the last AHL game Kumpulainen played in two months. That was him sent down to the ECHL on December 29 and played 24 games with the Iowa Heartlanders, scoring 5 goals and 11 assists. Most importantly, he got the chance to learn what it means to be a professional.

Kumpulainen started producing quality services with more consistency. He stayed above the pucks more often and marked his man defensively. He chased pucks in the offensive zone, harassed puck carriers and won races. Kumpulainen used his size in board battles and combined it with his deft hands to create smooth zone entry, make clean outlet passes and protect pucks until he could find an open teammate. He moved his feet regularly and seemed to improve his acceleration and speed as the season progressed.

All in all, he looked more like the player Wild management was hoping to see.

After putting up a run of five points in six games that culminated in an excellent series against the Cincinnati Cyclones, Kumpulainen was rewarded with a recall to the AHL.

He returned to the Iowa Wild in late February and produced a goal and two assists in 22 mostly unremarkable games. Still, he seemed to largely eliminate some of the glaring misplays and poor reads that so often hurt his team earlier in the season. Kumpulainen, however, finished with a negative point and suffered a healthy defeat in the penultimate match of the season. However, that should not overshadow his resilient recovery after a difficult start to his professional career.

What’s next?

The issue Kumpulainen will have to solve this summer and next season is determining who he is as a professional and how he can play to his strengths. When he is at his best, he effectively increases puck possession with his size, good hands and patience to fend off defenders and create space for teammates, and plays with a strong, defensively aware, two-way mentality.

He needs to become more decisive with the puck and focus on making good decisions consistently, even if that means playing it safe and committing to puck pursuit and heavy forechecking, something he has shown he can do.

Kumpulainen walks the fine line that so many prospects walk as they encounter challenges in professional hockey that they have never encountered before. They must learn to eliminate the immature or risky aspects of their play that they could get away with at lower levels, while still maintaining the confidence and swagger that formed the basis for these traits in the first place.

With two full years left on his current contract, Kumpulainen still has plenty of time to find out. The hope is that he can use the long runway in front of him to follow a path that many big forwards often take as they figure out how to use their size as an advantage while also learning that they can’t simply rely on it to dominate.

Right now, the best example of the type of player Kumpulainen could become if he continues his development is Justin Brazeau, who played 75 ECHL games in two seasons before becoming an NHL player late in his fifth professional season.

That seems a bit far-fetched for him, especially since Brazeau is a wing. Still, Kumpulainen’s physical assets and foundation as a two-way player remain worth investing in.

It will also be important for Kumpulainen to show that he can be responsible and reliable enough to deploy at center on a nightly basis, as he likely lacks the foot speed and agility needed to be a winger in the increasingly fast-paced NHL.

It is still too early to draw any real conclusions about Kumpulainen’s long-term prospects. Still, he needs to show some significant improvement next season if he wants to remain in the organization’s long-term plans.

With Hunter Haight and Bankier ahead of him on the organizational depth chart, Charlie Stramel likely now that he’s turned pro, and Adam Benak and Carter Klippenstein in the pipeline, the 2026-2027 season will be a chance for Kumpulainen to plant his flag and establish himself in the Wild organization.

The fact that his season ended on an upward trajectory after a rough start provides some encouragement, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him emerge from training camp as a very different player. That’s certainly the hope.