Ryan Alan Lasch (born January 22, 1987) is an American professional ice hockey winger for Lahti Pelicans of the Finnish Liiga.

Ryan Lasch
Born (1987-01-22) January 22, 1987 (age 37)
Lake Forest, California, U.S.
Height 5 ft 8 in (173 cm)
Weight 174 lb (79 kg; 12 st 6 lb)
Position Right wing
Shoots Right
Liiga team
Former teams
Lahti Pelicans
Södertälje SK
Växjö Lakers
TPS
Frölunda HC
SC Bern
ZSC Lions
National team  United States
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 2010–present

Playing career edit

After playing four years with St. Cloud State University, Lasch completed his collegiate career as the university's all-time leading scorer.[1] An undrafted free agent, Lasch began his professional career in Europe, signing a one-year contract with Södertälje SK of the Swedish Elitserien. During the following 2011–12 season he led the Finnish SM-Liiga with 62 points to capture the scoring title whilst helping the Lahti Pelicans to finish second, their highest in franchise history.

Despite re-signing to a one-year contract extension with the Pelicans, on May 31, 2012, Lasch was signed by the Anaheim Ducks to a two-year contract prior to the 2012–13 season. In signing he became the franchise's first Orange County–born player to sign with the Ducks.[2] Due to the lockout he was directly assigned to the Ducks AHL affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals.

Unable to duplicate his European success with the Admirals, and also enduring a stint with ECHL club the Fort Wayne Komets, Lasch opted to return to the Swedish Elitserien, signing on loan from the Ducks to the Växjö Lakers for the remainder of the season on January 26, 2013.[3] After playing in the Lakers last 10 games to end their season, the Ducks traded Lasch along with a seventh round pick in 2014 to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for Dave Steckel on March 15, 2013. He was then immediately recalled to report to AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies.[4]

Lasch then spent the 2013–14 season entirely with the Växjö Lakers, tallying 20 goals and 16 assists in 54 SHL games. The 2014–15 season saw him move to Finland. He made 43 Liiga appearances for HC TPS, before returning to Sweden.[5] He finished the season with Frölunda HC, scoring six goals in 12 contests to go along with eight assists.

Lasch re-signed with Frölunda for the 2015–16 campaign and won the Swedish national championship as well as the Champions Hockey League (CHL) with the team. He led the SHL in assists (51 in regular season) and also scored 15 goals. In 16 playoff contests, Lasch tallied eight goals and eleven assists. In CHL play, Lasch scored seven goals and dished out nine assists in 13 games and was named Champions Hockey League Most Valuable Player.[6]

On September 8, 2016, Lasch was signed to a one-year contract by SC Bern as a replacement for Kris Versteeg.[7] He saw the ice in 52 contests with 17 goals and 34 assists en route to winning the 2017 Swiss championship. On April 21, he signed a three-year deal with Frölunda HC, returning for a second stint with the SHL outfit.[8]

He returned to Lahti Pelicans for the 2020–21 season.[9]

On January 23, 2021, Lasch joined the ZSC Lions as a replacement for injured Chris Baltisberger for the remainder of the 2020–21 season.[10]

On May 19, 2021, Lasch returned to Frölunda.[11]

On June 2, 2023, Lasch signed a two-year contract with his former team, Lahti Pelicans of the Finnish Liiga.[12]

Playing style edit

Matias Strozyk, a journalist for Yleisradio, described Ryan Lasch's playing style for Elite Prospects in 2011:[13]

A fairly small winger and hard worker. A quick skater with sharp movement. Has a very good shot and does well in playmaking. Useful as an offensive player, especially as a finisher. Sometimes criticized of embellishment when drawing penalties.

Career statistics edit

Regular season and playoffs edit

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2003–04 Pembroke Lumber Kings CJHL 53 13 17 30 42
2004–05 Pembroke Lumber Kings CJHL 49 25 39 64 24
2005–06 Pembroke Lumber Kings CJHL 56 70 77 147 61
2006–07 St. Cloud State University WCHA 40 16 23 39 8
2007–08 St. Cloud State University WCHA 40 25 28 53 12
2008–09 St. Cloud State University WCHA 38 18 24 42 52
2009–10 St. Cloud State University WCHA 43 20 29 49 26
2010–11 Södertälje SK SEL 55 12 18 30 40
2011–12 Pelicans SM-l 59 24 38 62 26 17 5 11 16 29
2012–13 Norfolk Admirals AHL 19 2 3 5 6
2012–13 Fort Wayne Komets ECHL 12 6 9 15 2
2012–13 Växjö Lakers SEL 10 0 5 5 4
2012–13 Toronto Marlies AHL 11 4 1 5 4 2 1 0 1 0
2013–14 Växjö Lakers SHL 54 20 16 36 14 12 1 5 6 0
2014–15 TPS Liiga 43 12 24 36 22
2014–15 Frölunda HC SHL 12 6 8 14 2 9 2 1 3 4
2015–16 Frölunda HC SHL 51 15 36 51 20 16 8 11 19 2
2016–17 SC Bern NLA 46 13 25 38 12 16 4 9 13 2
2017–18 Frölunda HC SHL 49 15 40 55 18 5 0 3 3 2
2018–19 Frölunda HC SHL 46 12 38 50 18 16 6 13 19 4
2019–20 Frölunda HC SHL 48 12 36 48 38
2020–21 Pelicans Liiga 26 10 27 36 0
2020–21 ZSC Lions NL 23 7 10 17 2 9 4 1 5 0
2021–22 Frölunda HC SHL 52 13 53 66 8 9 0 8 8 0
SHL totals 377 105 250 355 162 67 17 41 58 12

International edit

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2012 United States WC 7th 7 0 2 2 0
Senior totals 7 0 2 2 0

Awards and honors edit

Award Year
CJHL
MVP 2006
College
All-WCHA Rookie Team 2007
All-WCHA First Team 2008, 2009
AHCA West Second-Team All-American 2008
All-WCHA Second Team 2010
WCHA All-Academic Team 2010
Liiga
All-Star Team 2012
Veli-Pekka Ketola trophy 2012
SHL
Le Mat trophy champion 2016, 2019 [14][15]
Forward of the Year 2019
Stefan Liv Memorial Trophy 2019
NLA
Champion 2017
CHL
Champion 2016, 2019 [16][17]
MVP 2016

References edit

  1. ^ "Huskies' leading scorers". St. Cloud State Huskies. October 14, 2010. Retrieved January 2, 2013.
  2. ^ "Q&A: Ryan Lasch". Anaheim Ducks. May 31, 2012. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
  3. ^ "Lasch joins Lakers for remainder of season" (in Swedish). Växjö Lakers. January 26, 2013. Retrieved January 26, 2013.
  4. ^ "Leafs trade Steckel to Ducks for Lasch, draft pick". The Sports Network. March 15, 2013. Retrieved March 15, 2013.
  5. ^ TT (January 30, 2015). "Ryan Lasch till Frölunda". Svenska Dagbladet. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
  6. ^ "Ryan Lasch: NordicBet MVP! | Champions Hockey League". www.championshockeyleague.net. Archived from the original on February 15, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  7. ^ "Replacement for Versteeg found - SC Bern signs American Ryan Lasch". swisshockeynews.ch. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
  8. ^ "Lasch flyttar "hem" - Frölunda Indians". www.frolundaindians.com (in Swedish). Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  9. ^ "Pelaajat".
  10. ^ "ZSC Lions sign Pelican Ryan Lasch". swisshockeynews.ch. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  11. ^ "Ryan Lasch återvänder till Frölunda". www.svt.se. May 19, 2021. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  12. ^ "He's back again – Ryan Lasch palaa Pelicansiin kaksivuotisella sopimuksella". pelicans.fi (in Finnish). June 2, 2023. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
  13. ^ "Ryan Lasch player profile". eliteprospects.com. July 8, 2016. Retrieved July 8, 2016.
  14. ^ "Frolunda Swedish champions for 2015/16" (in Swedish). norran.se. April 24, 2016. Archived from the original on September 20, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
  15. ^ "Frolunda Swedish champions for 2018/19" (in Swedish). shl.se. May 2, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  16. ^ Gustav Orbring (February 7, 2017). "Frölunda win CHL for second year running" (in Swedish). SVTSport.se. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
  17. ^ Risto Pakarinen (February 5, 2019). "Frolunda back on the throne". Retrieved February 5, 2019.

External links edit