Heimosalmi is an easy player to notice because of his gorgeous skating. He is a very agile skater who shows good edgework and the ability to change directions quickly. He moves through space quickly and effortlessly. His crossovers and pivots are also excellent, allowing him to easily respond to sudden changes in the play. While his stride is somewhat rigid and upright, limiting how much power he generates in his stride, he has excellent escapability in his own zone and is adept at sensing forechecking pressure and moving the puck to open space with a quick turn or outlet pass. He possesses above-average puckhandling skill for a defender, showing some bursts of effectiveness carrying the puck in transition, but he’s still somewhat passive when jumping into the offense. Heimosalmi shows a great understanding of when to pinch in the offensive zone and when to defer to defense, so there might be more offensive production as he moves up the ladder. Heimosalmi already shows signs of being a quality one-on-one defender on the rush, timing when to close the gap well and showing a pesky, active stick to break up moves to the inside. He is an effective rush defender because of how well he can move laterally while skating backwards. He is not overly aggressive or physical in his own zone but will stand his ground and use his stick in physical battles when needed. He is confident, poised and elusive enough to regularly exit the defensive zone with possession and carry it by himself to the offensive zone. He has nice offensive inclinations, noticing correct times to pinch higher into the offensive zone or move into dangerous space to receive a pass. His shot is on the weaker side, and he’s not very creative as a playmaker, which limits his ability to produce points. His overall defensive game is fine, albeit unspectacular. He’s not strong in 50-50 battles and could show a little more intensity to win pucks back. He can get caught puck-watching a little bit. He’s definitely a better rush defender than a cycle defender. There are some holes in his game but there are some tremendous traits in his game that should be extremely transferrable to the higher levels. He could also stand to improve his explosiveness, making his a well-rounded, dynamic skater.

– FCHockey’s 2021 NHL Draft Guide