Swiss team dismisses ex-Canuck Jake Virtanen after altercation with teammate
Jake Virtanen appears to be on the outs with his Swiss club.
Virtanen, who plays for EHC Visp of the Swiss League — a tier below Switzerland’s National League, is reportedly no longer wanted by the team. According to SwissHockeyNews.ch, the team has hit the trade market in the hopes of facilitating his move to another organization, a week before the start of the league’s playoffs.
SWISS LEAGUE | EHC Visp confirms putting Jake Virtanen on the market #EHCVisp https://t.co/GulmU3X1zu
— swisshockeynews.ch (@SwissHockeyNews) February 7, 2023
The 26-year-old from New Westminster, BC, reportedly got into a “verbal and muscular altercation” with teammate Daniel Eigenmann during a game on January 31, Swiss outlet Le Matin has reported.
Eigenmann, a defenceman, reportedly told management “it’s him or us” after the altercation, according to Emmanuel Favre of Le Matin.
Virtanen has been scratched in the two games since. Visp won the first 4-1 against EHC Winterthur and the second 5-1 versus EHC Olten in the two matches.
He signed a two-year contract with Visp in November after failing to earn a contract on his training camp try-out with the Edmonton Oilers last September. It was Virtanen’s latest NHL setback after he was bought out by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2021 offseason.
Virtanen played 317 career NHL games over parts of six seasons with the Canucks after being selected No. 6 in the 2014 NHL Draft by Vancouver, amassing 100 points (55 goals, 45 assists).
The 6’1″, 227-pound winger hadn’t played an NHL regular-season game since the Canucks put him on leave on May 1, 2021, after sexual misconduct allegations became public. Virtanen was charged with sexual assault in January, and found not guilty in July.
He registered 16 points (nine goals, seven assists) in 36 games with Spartak Moskva in the KHL in 2021-22, and has 25 points (14 goals, 11 assists) in 21 games with Visp this season — ranking him 44th in league scoring.
Follow Channels and Categories