Joni Ikonen was injured in a training session at home in Finland at the end of May, and finally made his return to hockey last weekend.

This week, Ikonen got his first goal of the 2019 season - a fantastic effort where he took the puck from one end to the other. Ikonen describes the goal in his own words in the exclusive interview that Eyes On The Prize had with him on Sunday.

“They [Montreal] had a good contact with me during the whole process, and still are,” Ikonen said. Ikonen says he has felt the support from Montreal all though the recovery. “It’s good when they are interested in your development and that builds confidence [for me] too.”

With three goals in two games, the focus still remains on taking KalPa to the playoffs, Ikonen wants this season to last as long as possible, and there is no focus on next season even if he signed a new contract with KalPa in December. He also predicted that KalPa will make the playoffs.

Listen to the interview here, and we’ll have more to say about it on the next episode of Habsent Minded.