Vili Saarijärvi 86 Player Review

So I was lucky enough to get Vili Saarijärvi in my EA rewards pack, and I have found him to be an interesting player to use.

Synergies-PP,DR,B Synergies active-PP,T I used him as a 2nd pairing LD with Krug. In 23 games, he has 4 goals and 8 assists, for 12 points in 23 games. These may not seem like the best stats, but I am not the greatest player, and this is quite a good ratio for me. For example, base Jumbo is my highest point scorer, and his ratio of points to games is around the same.

Skating 10/10 (92) His skating is honestly unbelievable. He is so quick and can breeze by nearly any player. He is the fastest player I have used, and I have used, Mackinnon, Larkin, and Hagelin. This speed really helps him catch up to players who are on breakaways or even get his own breakaways, if you are willing to take the risk.

Shooting 9/10 (88)

He has a slapshot power of 98 and a wristshot power of 97. This really shows ingame, and he has a bullet of a shot. I found it really good on one-timers from the point. One concern people might have about his shooting is his accuracy, but I honestly did not find this to be an issue.

Hands 6/10 (84)

His hands were fine, I didn't really try any dekes with him but he had no issues with controlling the puck.

Checking 2/10 (80)

Yeah, this is where the problems begin. A bad checking stat combined with a short height do not work well together. He literally can't bump a normal-sized player off the puck. This creates a major problem, because this is something that it is important for a defenseman to do.

Defense 4/10 (84)

His defense is pretty bad. Again, his height means that he has a very short stick, and this makes stick-lifting and poke checking difficult. However, his incredible speed helps him a lot with his defense, as he can catch up with nearly any attacker.

Overall, he is a dynamic and electrifying player to play with, and one of the most fun players that I have used this year due to his incredible speed and amazing shot. From a practical standpoint, he is not the best defender. I liked him on defense purely for his amazing one-timers. He might be ok on defense if you pair him with a defender that can actually hit and defend. However, he may be a better forward than defender, although I have not tried him there.

For a comparison, I would go with Johnny Hockey but with worse hands and a harder and slightly less accurate shot.

Overall Rating 6/10

I give him a fairly low rating, but I would just like to add that despite his massive weaknesses, he is one of the most fun cards to use in the whole game.