Niko Mikkola

Niko Mikkola (born 27 April 1996) is a Finnish professional ice hockey player who is a defenceman for the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Mikkola was selected by the St. Louis Blues, 127th overall, in the 2015 NHL entry draft. He previously played for the St. Louis Blues and the New York Rangers. Mikkola won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Panthers in 2024 and 2025.

Playing career Mikkola made his Liiga debut playing with KalPa during the 2014–15 Liiga season.

On 29 May 2017, despite interest from the St. Louis Blues to sign his entry-level deal, Mikkola opted to continue his professional career in the Liiga, signing a two-year deal with fellow Finnish outfit, Tappara. By still harbouring NHL ambitions, Mikkola opted to attend the St. Louis Blues 2017 training camp in preparation for the 2017–18 season. He was assigned back to Tappara after competing in two pre-season contests with the Blues on 25 September 2017. In his only season with Tappara, Mikkola added 2 goals and 11 points in 50 regular season games before helping the club to a silver medal in the postseason, leading the league in plus-minus.

On 1 June 2018, Mikkola agreed to a two-year, entry-level contract with the St. Louis Blues.

During the 2019–20 season, on 7 January 2020, Mikkola made his NHL debut with the Blues against the San Jose Sharks.

On 8 March 2021, Mikkola scored his first NHL goal, against San Jose Sharks goaltender Devan Dubnyk.

Following his second full season with the Blues in 2021–22, Mikkola as a restricted free agent was signed to a one-year, $1.9 million contract extension on 17 July 2022.

During the 2022–23 season, Mikkola registered three assists through 50 regular season games before he was traded by the Blues on 9 February 2023, alongside Vladimir Tarasenko, to the New York Rangers in exchange for a conditional first-round selection in 2023 NHL entry draft and fourth-round selection in 2024, Samuel Blais and Hunter Skinner.

As a free agent from the Rangers, Mikkola signed a three-year, $7.5 million contract with the Florida Panthers on 1 July 2023.

On 24 June 2024, Mikkola won the Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers, after edging out the Edmonton Oilers 2–1 in game 7 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final.

On 2 October 2025, Mikkola signed an eight-year contract extension with the Panthers beginning with 2026–27 NHL season.

International play

Mikkola represented the Finland junior team at the 2016 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.

He represented the Finland national team at the 2019 IIHF World Championship and the 4 Nations Face-Off.

He represented Finland at the 2026 Winter Olympics and won a bronze medal.

Career statistics Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2014–15 KalPa Jr. A 37 9 14 23 80 — — — — — 2014–15 KalPa Liiga 10 0 1 1 4 — — — — — 2014–15 Hokki Mestis 5 1 0 1 8 7 0 1 1 2 2015–16 KalPa Liiga 55 3 6 9 22 3 0 1 1 4 2015–16 KalPa Jr. A — — — — — 8 0 1 1 10 2016–17 KalPa Liiga 56 4 11 15 89 10 1 2 3 4 2017–18 Tappara Liiga 50 2 9 11 54 16 0 1 1 10 2018–19 San Antonio Rampage AHL 70 2 7 9 41 — — — — — 2019–20 San Antonio Rampage AHL 48 2 12 14 24 — — — — — 2019–20 St. Louis Blues NHL 5 0 1 1 0 — — — — — 2020–21 St. Louis Blues NHL 30 1 2 3 11 4 0 1 1 2 2021–22 St. Louis Blues NHL 54 3 10 13 55 12 0 1 1 8 2022–23 St. Louis Blues NHL 50 0 3 3 35 — — — — — 2022–23 New York Rangers NHL 31 1 2 3 23 7 0 2 2 12 2023–24 Florida Panthers NHL 82 3 14 17 69 24 2 2 4 22 2024–25 Florida Panthers NHL 76 6 16 22 70 22 3 3 6 37 2025–26 Florida Panthers NHL 68 3 8 11 47 — — — — — Liiga totals 171 9 27 36 169 29 1 4 5 18 NHL totals 396 17 56 73 310 69 5 9 14 81

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2016 Finland WJC 7 0 1 1 6 2019 Finland WC 10 2 3 5 0 2025 Finland 4NF 4th 3 0 1 1 2 2026 Finland OG 6 0 3 3 4 Junior totals 7 0 1 1 6 Senior totals 19 2 7 9 6

Awards and honours Award Year RefNHL Stanley Cup champion 2024, 2025