After seven years in the North American professional circuit, winger Jake Leschyshyn is taking his talents overseas. According to a team announcement, Leschyshyn has signed a one-year contract for the 2026-27 season with the Finnish Liiga’s HIFK.
Leschyshyn, 27, was the fifth player ever selected by the Vegas Golden Knights organization. In their inaugural season, the Golden Knights selected Leschyshyn with the 62nd overall pick of the 2017 NHL Draft. The 5’11” winger was coming off a decent season with the WHL’s Regina Pats, scoring 17 goals and 40 points in 47 games with a -12 rating.
After a few more years with the Pats, Leschyshyn made the jump to professional hockey in 2019-20 with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves. His professional career did not get off to a great start, to say the least, as he finished his rookie season with four goals and eight points in 61 games, with a -7 rating. Leschyshyn continued to develop his skills in the AHL and made his debut with the Golden Knights during the 2021-22 season.
Unfortunately, he wouldn’t stick with the Golden Knights for very long. A season after debuting with the team that drafted him, he was exposed on the waiver wire by Vegas and later claimed by the New York Rangers. He didn’t improve much with the Rangers, but had a good showing with their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, scoring five goals and 15 points in 18 games with a +3 rating.
Outside of a one-game stint with the Rangers in the 2023-24 campaign, Leschyshyn spent the next three years relegated to the AHL. In two years with the Wolf Pack, the former second-round pick registered 21 goals and 43 points in 116 games with a disastrous -43 showing. Eventually, Leschyshyn signed a one-year contract with the Buffalo Sabres last summer and spent the entire season with the AHL’s Rochester Americans, scoring 13 goals and 22 points in 66 games, with a -18 rating.