Finnish center Topi Rönni, 20, has signed a two-year contract to play with Vaasan Sport, the Finnish Liiga club announced on Saturday.
Rönni was an emerging prospect for Tappara and a second-round draft pick of the Calgary Flames in 2022. However, both organizations severed all ties with him in March 2024 after he was convicted of sexual assault in a Finnish court for an incident that occurred in 2021.
“I have taken responsibility and suffered the consequences of my actions for the mistake I made in my teenage years,” Rönni is quoted on the club’s website. “I am still sorry to everyone involved who was affected by the event. However, now is the time to open a new page in my life as a hockey player. Today I am very grateful to Vaasan Sport for another opportunity and the possibility to continue my hockey career and pursue my dreams. In the coming seasons, I want to help Vaasan Sport succeed.”
“Topi is a versatile center who has a clear path ahead, as long as he puts in the work,” said club sports director Ari-Pekka Pajuluoma. “He has been playing pro hockey for a long time and played last season in the Slovak league, which is tough for a young player. Topi is a young player with a lot of potential for development.”
Rönni had 11 points in 64 Liiga games for Tappara and HPK before taking a leave of absence in 2023 while his case was being investigated. He played last season in Sovakia for HK Dukla Michalovce, where he had 29 points in 48 regular-season and playoff games.
Internationally, Rönni played for Finland in the 2022 IIHF U-18 World Championship and at the 2023 World Junior Championship.
Sport finished 11th in the 16-team Liiga in 2024-25 and, after winning a play-in series, was swept by Lukko Rauma in the quarterfinals.
Former Tappara player, Flames pick Topi Rönni signs with Slovak club MichalovceLast week, 20-year-old Finnish center Topi Rönni signed a one-year contract with Slovak club Dukla Michalovce. Two years ago, he was taken in the second round, 59th overall, by the Calgary Flames in the NHL Entry Draft. Then he represented Finland at the 2023 World Junior Championship and, as recently as February of this year, he was playing for Tappara in the Finnish Liiga.
