Hurricanes standout Sebastian Aho was beaming when he learned Monday that Carolina will face the Seattle Kraken in two games in his homeland of Finland next season.
The contests, slated for Nov. 12 and Nov. 14, are part of the 2026 Global Series and will be played in the Finnish capital of Helsinki.
“Very excited. Happy,” Aho told reporters. “I’ve been dreaming about it for 10 years. When they announce the teams (for the Global games), you usually don’t see Carolina there, and you’re always like, ‘Bummer.’ But (this is) worth the wait.”
The contests will be the first in Europe for the Hurricanes since they played the Minnesota Wild in Helsinki in 2010. Aho attended that game as a 13-year-old.
Now 28, Aho has topped 20 goals in all 10 of his NHL seasons and has 25 this season along with 72 points.
“Hockey is such a big part of Finnish culture, and people definitely enjoy watching it and cheering on Finns,” Aho said. “It’s such a big part of the whole country, and I know it’s going to be a good atmosphere at the games.”
Aho isn’t the only Finnish player on the Hurricanes. Jesperi Kotkaniemi also is from the country.
Seattle has three Finns – forwards Kaapo Kakko, Eeli Tolvanen and Jani Nyman.
“I was always thinking that it would be fun to play there in Finland in front of all of my family and friends,” Kakko said. “Now, I’ll get to do that, so I’m real excited about it.”
The Global Series will be the first for the Kraken, who are in their fifth season as a franchise.
Finland won the bronze medal at the recent Winter Olympics in Italy.
