Former NHLer Jesse Puljujarvi signs two-year deal in Switzerland

A polarizing player is heading overseas.

On Tuesday, Genève-Servette HC of the National League in Switzerland announced that the team has signed forward Jesse Puljujärvi to a two-year contract.

This is the second time Puljujärvi has left North America for Europe. After spending parts of three seasons with the Edmonton Oilers, the Swedish-born winger went back to Finland, playing for Liiga squad Kärpät for parts of two seasons before coming back to Edmonton for the 2021 season. The Älvkarleby native has bounced around over the past few seasons, having been traded by the Oilers to the Carolina Hurricanes in February 2023.

After going unsigned at the beginning of the 2023-24 season, the Finnish nationalist signed a two-year deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Then, in February of this past season, his contract was terminated. That opened up the chance for him to join the Florida Panthers’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers, on a tryout deal just a few days later. In March, he signed a two-way deal for the rest of the season.

Puljujärvi managed to get into a few games before the end of the regular season, scoring a goal in five of them for the Panthers. He didn’t appear in any postseason games as Florida went on to win the Stanley Cup for the second year in a row. Overall, the 27-year-old scored four goals and six assists for 10 points in 31 games.

With the Checkers, he helped the team advance to the Calder Cup Final, scoring 11 points in 18 games. However, Charlotte fell to the Vancouver Canucks’ top farm team, the Abbotsford Canucks, in six games.

In 387 regular-season games across eight NHL seasons, Puljujärvi scored 58 goals and 70 assists for 128 points, with another six points in 27 playoff games.

Despite no longer being in the NHL ranks, Puljujärvi admits he’s ready for the opportunity to play in one of the top leagues in Europe.

“I’m really excited to be joining Genève-Servette,” Puljujärvi said in a release. “I’ve heard nothing but good things about the organization and the league, and I’m looking forward to experiencing it all. We have a great group of players, and I’m going to give my all to help the team succeed. I’m also looking forward to visiting the city, which looks amazing, and meeting the fans.”

Puljujärvi joins Genève-Servette just a year removed from the team winning the Champions Hockey League for the first time in franchise history.