The 2026 Winter Olympics have been a rollercoaster tournament for Henri Jokiharju and Team Finland. It started with a disappointing upset loss to Slovakia in the tournament's first game, which we would soon find out wasn't that big an upset after all, as both teams advanced to the semi-finals. However, Jokiharju wore the goathorns on one of Slovakia's early goals, which put him in the doghouse for the rest of the tournament.
Jokiharju lost his defense partner to a healthy scratch, and then the Boston Bruins defenseman became the team's seventh defenseman. Finland rebounded with some massive wins on the way to the semi-finals against Canada, and a player like Jokiharju figured to be an X-Factor given the depth of Canada's lineup. While Finland could hide the Bruins' defenseman against other teams, it wouldn't be as easy against Canada when their 13th forward is former 50-goal scorer Sam Reinhart.
Jokiharju held his own against Canada, and the Finns nearly pulled off an upset that would've robbed North American hockey fans of the Canada-USA matchup they were dreaming of for the gold medal. The Finns took a two-goal lead by the halfway point of the game, but Reinhart, Shea Theodore, and Nathan MacKinnon led the comeback, with the latter scoring the winning goal with just 36 seconds remaining in the game.
While Jokiharju and the Finns came up short, they'll have a chance to head home with a bronze medal when they face Slovakia on Saturday. The Bruins' defenseman figures to play a big role in that game as well, as he saw his most ice time of the tournament in the semi-final and managed to fire three shots on goal. He also didn't waver against Canada's tenacious forecheck, which is something Slovakia will also bring.
Jokiharju and the Finns will have a chance to avenge their first loss of the tournament by upsetting Slovakia's bronze medal dreams. If a medal helps the defender return to Boston and be a big contributor down the stretch, it'll be an even bigger plus for the Bruins.