Erik Haula, a Finnish left wing for the New Jersey Devils, has been heating up lately. At 34 years old, the NHL veteran has played for over 20 percent of the teams in the NHL. Haula is currently in the second year of his three-year, $3.15 million contract.
Before his time with the Devils, Haula played for six other teams. He spent four years with the Minnesota Wild, two years with the Vegas Golden Knights, and one year each with the Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators, and Boston Bruins.
Haula has racked up some stats this season, with nine goals and eight assists for 17 points. He has 333 points (151 goals, 182 assists) during his 12-year career.
Haula has been seen putting his best foot forward as the playoff season approaches. Just recently, Haula scored in three straight games against the Calgary Flames (3/20), the Ottawa Senators (3/22), and the Vancouver Canucks (3/24).
Some of the honors Haula has received in his hockey career are the USHL All-Rookie Team, the USHL Second All-Star Team, and the WCHA Second All-Star Team. He earned all of these in the early 2010s with the University of Minnesota Gophers, where he played for four years, and then joined the Minnesota Wild for his NHL debut season.
This season, Haula has been placed twice on the injured reserve. First, on Dec. 3, due to an undisclosed injury. More recently, on Jan. 5, there was an ankle injury. He was injured after the team’s game the night prior against the San Jose Sharks. He returned shortly after getting reactivated to play on Feb. 4 against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
After a close win against the Chicago Blackhawks last night, things are looking up for the Devils. With Haula’s consistency and improvement and the team getting back into their groove, they have finally broken the three-game losing streak again and stand third in the Metropolitan Division. The Devils face the Winnipeg Jets tonight at 8 p.m. at the Canada Life Center. Tune in to see Haula turn up the heat tonight against the Jets!
