Right-wing Tony Virta was called up by the parent club March 20 to help fill the holes created by injuries to forwards Sergei Zholtok and Wes Walz, and Aaron Gavey’s battle with the flu.
Virta, playing in the first National Hockey League game of his career, failed to register a point in a 3-1 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Prior to his promotion, the 29-year-old prospect had spent all season with the American Hockey League’s Houston Aeros – the Wild’s primary affiliate.
“I wasn’t nervous, but it was new,” said Virta to the Pioneer Press. “I was surprised. Maybe it’s because we played Columbus, but there wasn’t much hitting at all. I don’t know what was happening. There are a lot of young players in the AHL, and there was a lot of skating and hitting. I just have one NHL game, and it was against Columbus, so I really don’t know if I know what to expect.”
In 67 games with the Aeros, Virta has been a pleasant surprise, leading the team in scoring with 25 goals and 58 points, his first season in North America after spending the majority of his professional career in his native Finland with TPS Turku, where he was the Finnish player of the year last season.
Virta led the team in scoring with 27 goals 60 points in 56 games, while Minnesota’s first pick in last year’s draft, Mikko Koivu, saw action in 22 games tallying only one assist.
After a number of seasons of pro hockey in Europe, an NHL team finally took a chance and gambled on Virta, with the Wild picking him up in the fourth round, 103rd overall last year.
This will be GM Doug Risebrough’s best opportunity to see how Virta stacks up against the best players in the world, and may be the deciding factor if the Wild choose to pick up the option on his two-year contract.
If they choose to, that would sit just fine with Virta.
“I like North American hockey. There’s more action, and I like that. I try my best to get to the NHL.”
Virta, however, is not considered a prospect due to his age, and the amount of games he has played professionally in Europe.
