Ville Koistinen, 27 years old. Finland. Shoots: Left.Undrafted; signed with Nashville, May 2006. Acquired by Florida as a free agent, July, 2009.Career Notes: Spent six seasons with Ilves Tampere (SM-Liiga), career-best 8g-26a-34p in 2006.
Dirk from Nashville Predators blog On The Forecheck:
“Koistinen came out of nowhere in the 2007-8 season to provide some surprising punch for the Predators during a time when Shea Weber was down with an injury, putting up 17 points in 48 games and the 2nd-best Plus/Minus on the team (+13). During that offseason, the team traded away Marek Zidlicky with the intention of Koistinen assuming a major role on the Nashville power play in 2008-9, but that plan never worked out.
Instead, he found himself in a battle with Kevin Klein just to make the lineup each night. While he’s got some puck-moving skill and a decent shot from the point, he’s not a very quick skater, and will need to be paired with a beefier defender, as he does tend to get outmuscled along the boards. All in all, he can be a useful contributor, but only in a limited role on the right team.”
Many thanks, OTF.