Olli Malmivaara was born March 13, 1982 in Kajaani, Finland. The fourth round, 117th overall selection of the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, Malmivaara honed his skills in his homeland with Jokerit and SaiPa prior to his arrival in North America.
A physical defenseman, Malmivaara signed with the New Jersey Devils as a free agent on August 2, 2006. As a member of the Devils organization, he would appear in 60 regular season games with their AHL affiliate in Lowell. The following season, Malmivaara returned to the Lowell blue-line and made his NHL debut with New Jersey on October 31, 2007.
Internationally, Malmivaara has represented his homeland at numerous tournaments including the 2001 and 2002 World Junior Championships.