The Penguins have signed 24-year-old defenseman Juuso Riikola out of the Finnish Liiga. The signing was first reported by TSN's Darren Dreger:
Finland’s loss is Pittsburgh’s gain. Sources say the Pens have agreed to terms with Finnish Dman, Juuso Riikola. Left shot. 24 yrs old.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) May 17, 2018
Riikola has spent the past three full seasons with KalPa of the top Finnish men's league. He played in 59 games this season, recording eight goals and 16 assists in the low-scoring league. The signing comes after Riikola represented Finland at the 2018 World Championship in Denmark, where he tallied two assists in eight games.
Riikola is 6-foot, 190 pounds and is a left-handed shot. The Finnish site Leijonat.com calls Riikola a "versatile" player, as well as a strong skater that plays a physical game and has a heavy shot.
The Maple Leafs were one of the teams that had also shown interest in Riikola this spring.
The signing provides the Penguins' defensive prospect pool with some depth with Andrey Pedan leaving for the KHL and Lukas Bengtsson reportedly considering a move back to Sweden.