Patrik Virta (born 6 March 1996) is a Finnish professional ice hockey

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

who is currently an unrestricted free agent. He most recently played under contract with ERC Ingolstadt in the

Deutsche Eishockey Liga The Deutsche Eishockey Liga (for sponsorship reasons called "PENNY Deutsche Eishockey Liga") (; English: ''German Ice Hockey League'') or DEL, is a German professional ice hockey league and the highest division in German ice hockey. Founded in ...

(DEL). Virta was selected by the New York Rangers in the

2017 NHL Entry Draft The 2017 NHL Entry Draft was the 55th NHL Entry Draft. The draft was held on June 23–24, 2017, at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. The first three selections were Nico Hischier going to the New Jersey Devils, Nolan Patrick going to the ...

Playing career

Virta made his professional debut in his native Finland, appearing in the Liiga playing with his original youth club,

HPK Hämeenlinnan Pallokerho (HPK) is a professional ice hockey team in the Liiga, the top men's ice hockey league in Finland. Their home ice is the Ritari-areena in Hämeenlinna. HPK was established in 1929. The parent club of the team is HPK Edu ...

during the 2014–15 season. Following a break out 2016–17 season with TPS, scoring 14 goals and 26 points in 49 contests, Virta was selected as an overage prospect by the New York Rangers in the seventh round, 208th overall, in the

on 26 June 2017. He continued his development in the 2017–18 season, matching his 14 goals scores while improving his offensive output to 40 points in 58 games. Without a contract offer from the Rangers, Virta opted leave the Liiga and continue his development in the KHL, securing a one-year contract with Slovak club, HC Slovan Bratislava, on 17 July 2018. Virta later reached a mutual contract termination with Slovan and signed with

Örebro HK Örebro HK is a Swedish ice hockey club located in Örebro. The team is currently playing in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL; formerly Elitserien), the top tier of Swedish ice hockey, since the 2013–14 season. The team's home arena is Behrn Are ...

in the

Swedish Hockey League The Swedish Hockey League (officially SHL; sv, Svenska Hockeyligan) is a professional ice hockey league, and the highest division in the Swedish ice hockey system. The league currently consists of 14 teams. The league was founded in 1975, an ...

. In joining Örebro during the 2018-19 season, Virta immediately adjusted within the team, scoring 7 goals and 15 points in 37 games. On 19 June 2019, Virta returned to the Liiga as a free agent, agreeing to a two-year contract with Tappara. Virta played four seasons with Tappara before leaving Finland to sign a one-year contract with German club, ERC Ingolstadt of the DEL, on 14 June 2023.

Career statistics

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Virta, Patrik 1996 births Living people ERC Ingolstadt players Finnish ice hockey forwards HPK players New York Rangers draft picks Örebro HK players SaPKo players HC Slovan Bratislava players HC TPS players TuTo players Tappara players Ice hockey people from Hämeenlinna Finnish expatriate ice hockey players in Slovakia Finnish expatriate ice hockey players in Sweden