Jani Rita

Jani Rita
Rita with Jokerit in 2011
Born	(1981-07-25) July 25, 1981 (age 44) Helsinki, Finland
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	209 lb (95 kg; 14 st 13 lb)
Position	Left wing
Shot	Left
Played for	Jokerit Edmonton Oilers HPK Pittsburgh Penguins
National team	Finland
NHL draft	13th overall, 1999 Edmonton Oilers
Playing career	1998–2016

Jani Markus Rita (born July 25, 1981) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey winger who last played with Jokerit of the Russian KHL, for whom he played most of his career. ^[1]

Playing career

Despite limited NHL experience, Rita has played extensively in the American Hockey League and in the SM-liiga in his native Finland. Rita started his hockey career in a youth team of EKS (Espoon Kiekkoseura). He played his first seasons of pro hockey for Jokerit, Helsinki, and was drafted 13th overall in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft by the Edmonton Oilers.

Rita played for HPK in the SM-liiga during the 2004–05 NHL lockout, winning the bronze medal. That season he was awarded the Raimo Kilpiö trophy, and led the league in scoring during the playoffs. He also represented Finland at the 2005 World Hockey Championship, earning one assist. He had signed with Jokerit for the 2005–06 season with a contractual clause enabling him to return to the NHL. When the Oilers offered him a one-year contract in August 2005, Rita signed on to return to North America.

Although once considered a premier prospect at the NHL level, Rita's slow development showed cause for concern to Oilers management. On January 26, 2006, Rita was traded along with Cory Cross, to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Dick Tärnström. He finished the season with just 10 points in 51 games.

It was announced on 2 May 2006 that Rita was to depart Pittsburgh to return to his original club, Jokerit. He was the best goal scorer of SM-liiga in 2006–07 season. After ten more years with Jokerit including the club's transition from the Finnish Liiga to the KHL in 2014, Rita announced his retirement in June 2016. ^[2]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1997–98	Jokerit	FIN U18		7	7	4	11	2		—	—	—	—	—
1997–98	Jokerit	FIN U20		36	15	9	24	2		8	4	1	5	0
1998–99	Jokerit	FIN U20		20	9	13	22	8		6	1	1	2	8
1998–99	Jokerit	SM-l		41	3	2	5	39		—	—	—	—	—
1999–2000	Jokerit	FIN U20		1	1	0	1	0		—	—	—	—	—
1999–2000	Jokerit	SM-l		49	6	3	9	10		11	1	0	1	0
2000–01	Jokerit	FIN U20		3	3	2	5	0		—	—	—	—	—
2000–01	Jokerit	SM-l		50	5	10	15	18		5	0	0	0	2
2001–02	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		1	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	Hamilton Bulldogs	AHL		76	25	17	42	32		15	8	4	12	0
2002–03	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		12	3	1	4	0		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Hamilton Bulldogs	AHL		64	21	27	48	18		23	3	4	7	2
2003–04	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		2	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	Toronto Roadrunners	AHL		64	17	24	41	18		1	1	0	1	0
2004–05	HPK	SM-l		56	21	18	39	12		10	7	4	11	4
2005–06	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		21	3	0	3	6		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		30	3	4	7	4		—	—	—	—	—
2006–07	Jokerit	SM-l		56	32	20	52	28		10	6	1	7	2
2007–08	Jokerit	SM-l		37	10	10	20	16		14	6	4	10	0
2008–09	Jokerit	SM-l		58	15	16	31	12		5	0	2	2	0
2009–10	Jokerit	SM-l		58	13	15	28	26		3	0	2	2	27
2010–11	Jokerit	SM-l		8	2	0	2	2		7	0	1	1	2
2011–12	Jokerit	SM-l		60	17	14	31	20		10	0	2	2	4
2012–13	Jokerit	SM-l		50	11	5	16	6		6	1	1	2	2
2013–14	Jokerit	Liiga		60	11	10	21	6		2	1	0	1	2
2014–15	Jokerit	KHL		34	3	2	5	8		4	0	0	0	2
2015–16	Jokerit	KHL		56	3	5	8	28		3	0	0	0	2
SM-l/Liiga totals				583	146	123	269	195		83	22	17	39	45
NHL totals				66	9	5	14	10		—	—	—	—	—
AHL totals				204	63	68	131	68		39	12	8	20	2

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1998	Finland	EJC		6	2	3	5	6
1999	Finland	WJC		6	1	1	2	2
2000	Finland	WJC		7	0	3	3	0
2001	Finland	WJC		7	8	1	9	0
2005	Finland	WC		7	0	2	2	6
2006	Finland	WC		6	1	0	1	0
Junior totals				26	11	8	19	8
Senior totals				13	1	2	3	6

Awards

• Raimo Kilpiö trophy for gentleman player - 2005
• Aarne Honkavaara trophy for best goal scorer - 2007

References

1. "Jokerien jokeri Jani Rita lopettaa uransa" (in Finnish). yle.fi. 2016-06-27. Retrieved 2016-06-27.
2. "Jani Rita lägger skridskorna på hyllan – satsar på studierna". 27 June 2016. Retrieved 2016-06-29.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  Eurohockey.com , or  Hockey-Reference.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database

Preceded by Michael Henrich	Edmonton Oilers first-round draft pick 1999	Succeeded by Alexei Mikhnov
Preceded by Kimmo Kuhta	Winner of the Raimo Kilpiö trophy 2004–05	Succeeded by Esa Pirnes
Preceded by Tony Salmelainen	Winner of the Aarne Honkavaara trophy 2006–07	Succeeded by Janne Pesonen