Former Washington Capitals first round draft pick tragically passes away at 47 years old

Miika Elomo was drafted by the Washington Capitals 23rd overall in the 1995 draft.

Sadly, he never turned into an NHL player, getting into just two career games during the 1999-2000 season, recording a single assist in the league.

He did spend several years in North America playing in the AHL where he got into 216 career games, recording 30 goals and 45 assists for 75 points.

After just four years in North America, he returned to Finland where he spent the rest of his playing career.

He would go on to spend four more years playing for the Blues of the SM-Liiga, the top-tier professional league in Finland at the time.

After recording zero points in 15 games with the Blues in the 2004-05 season, Elomo called it a career, but he was not done in hockey.

The Finnish veteran grinder got back into the game during the 2012-13 season when he got a coaching role with a Finish junior club.

He would go on to spend the next 12 years coaching in various leagues across Europe, mainly Finland, but also branching out to Norway, and eventually France.

France is where his hockey career came to a sudden an unexpected end as he tragically passed away at the age of 47.

He was actively serving as head coach of Cergy-Pontoise of the French top professional league, the Ligue Magnus. It was just his second year with the team.

Miika Elomo will be dearly missed by his friends, family, teammates, and fellow coaches.

The House of Hockey Family would like to send our deepest condolences to Elomo's loved ones and players in this difficult time. Rest in peace Miika.