Atro Leppanen joined the Edmonton Oilers on a one-year contract in April 2025, coming over to North America at the age of 26. Momentum was high for the blueliner as he set Finland’s Liiga scoring record for a d-man with 63 points (21g-42a) in 60 games.

A long-term injury held the Mantta, Finland native out of the lineup for over a month in January and missing 23 games. Despite the injury, Leppanen still found himself as one the year’s top d-men. He was one of 13 AHL d-men to score at least 11 goals, finished 13th in defensive scoring with 38 points, and his five power-play goals was tied for second. The Condors went on to finish with the league’s sixth best power-play unit at 22.2%.

Most of his damage came after returning from injury as from February 18 on he registered 18 points (8g-10a) in 24 games. In the postseason, he added a goal to his total in the team’s first round series against Coachella Valley.

CONTRACT STATUS: Leppanen re-signed a one-year NHL deal with Edmonton for the 2026-27 season.

PLAYER REWIND SERIES: Every Wednesday, we’ll take a look back at the year that was for Condors who made headlines in the 2025-26 season. Up next in the Player Rewind series is Damien Carfagna.