Mikkola brings Stanley Cup to children’s hospital, former school in Finland

Niko Mikkola showed the Stanley Cup some new places during the trophy’s second visit to his hometown.

The Florida Panthers defenseman spent his day with the Cup in Oulu, Finland, on Thursday.

First, Mikkola brought the trophy to a children’s hospital to visit with patients.

“That was a pretty cool moment to see all the kids and bring the happy faces from them and for me also,” Mikkola said of the visit.

After, the veteran defenseman and the Stanley Cup visited one of his old schools, Kiiminkipuiston koulu, for a special event with the students. Mikkola spoke to the students then took pictures and signed autographs. He called the event “amazing.”

To end his day, Mikkola took Lord Stanley back to his childhood hockey rink, where they posed for a picture in front of a mural that was painted inside the rink after the defenseman won the Stanley Cup with the Panthers in 2024.

“We’ve been doing the things we didn’t have the time to last year,” Mikkola said about his day. “It’s kind of like a different day for me also…It’s very cool to see my old schools, that was very special to me and also the hospital visit was very nice.”