Kari Lehtonen

Kari Lehtonen
Lehtonen with the Dallas Stars in October 2014
Born	(1983-11-16) November 16, 1983 (age 40) Helsinki, Finland
Height	6 ft 4 in (193 cm)
Weight	210 lb (95 kg; 15 st 0 lb)
Position	Goaltender
Caught	Left
Played for	Jokerit Atlanta Thrashers Dallas Stars
National team	Finland
NHL draft	2nd overall, 2002 Atlanta Thrashers
Playing career	1999–2018

Kari Lehtonen (born November 16, 1983) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey goaltender who played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Atlanta Thrashers and Dallas Stars. He was selected second overall in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft by the Thrashers, becoming the highest-drafted European goaltender, as well as being tied with Patrik Laine, Alexander Barkov and Kaapo Kakko for the highest-drafted Finnish player in NHL history.

Playing career

Early years

Lehtonen with the Dallas Stars in March 2011

Lehtonen was drafted second overall in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft by the Atlanta Thrashers after an outstanding 2001–02 season in the Finnish SM-liiga. Lehtonen was the backup goalie for Jokerit, but captured the starting position and won the Urpo Ylönen trophy, given to the best goalie of the season, and the league's playoff MVP award, the Jari Kurri trophy. Lehtonen stayed with Jokerit for one more season before moving to North America.

Atlanta Thrashers

During the 2003–04 season, Lehtonen mostly spent his time with the Chicago Wolves, the Thrashers' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, but he was called up for a number of occasions and played four games for the Thrashers, winning all four of them and posting one shutout. In the four games with the Thrashers, he posted a .953 save percentage and 1.25 goals against average (GAA).

Lehtonen spent the 2004–05 NHL lockout season with the Wolves, adjusting to the North American playing style. After playing 57 games for the Wolves, of which he won 38, posting .929 save percentage and 2.27 GAA, the Thrashers called him up, and Lehtonen started the 2005–06 season as the starting goalie for Atlanta. On the opening night of the 2005–06 season, Lehtonen suffered a serious groin injury when Florida Panthers centre Nathan Horton collided with him. The injury sidelined him for 35 games. Lehtonen was once again injured on April 6, 2006, when Tampa Bay Lightning forward Chris Dingman collided with him; Lehtonen tried to get to his feet, but sprained his ankle in the process.

Shortly into the 2006–07 season, Lehtonen broke the Atlanta Thrashers shutout streak record previously held by Michael Garnett. He also set his career highs in every category. AirTran Airways, a low-cost airline, signed Lehtonen as an endorser for the 2006–07 season. On February 8, 2007, Lehtonen became the Thrashers franchise leader for wins by a goaltender with 49, surpassing Pasi Nurminen's record of 48. On April 12, 2007, Lehtonen was the starting goaltender for the Thrashers in their first Stanley Cup playoff game.

After a rough start to the 2007–08 season, Lehtonen suffered another groin injury on October 18, 2007. He would miss 16 games before returning on December 5, 2007. ^[1] He finished the season with a respectable save percentage to go along with four shutouts as the Thrashers failed to qualify for the 2008 playoffs.

Dallas Stars

On February 9, 2010, Lehtonen was traded to the Dallas Stars in exchange for Ivan Vishnevskiy and a fourth-round draft pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft (Ivan Telegin).

Prior to the start of the 2010–11 season, the Stars signed Lehtonen to a three-year, $10.65 million extension. ^[2] In his first full season in Dallas, Lehtonen compiled a 34–24–11 record with a 2.55 GAA in 69 games played. Lehtonen and the Stars narrowly missed the 2011 playoffs after losing to the Minnesota Wild on the final day of the season to eliminate them from playoff contention, finishing the season only two points behind the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks for the last playoff spot.

On September 4, 2012, the day before an impending lockout, Lehtonen signed a five-year, $29.5 million contract.

Lehtonen made the playoffs with the Stars for the first time in 2014 as the team finished as the eighth and final seed in the Western Conference where they would eventually be defeated in six games by the top seeded Anaheim Ducks.

Prior to the 2015–16 season, the Stars acquired fellow Finnish goaltender Antti Niemi from the San Jose Sharks to compete with Lehtonen. They alternated regularly the next two seasons. ^[3] In the 2016 playoffs, Lehtonen established himself as the primary goalie. However, in Game 7 of the second round, he was pulled after giving up three goals in the first period as the Stars' season ended with a 6–1 loss to the St. Louis Blues for a 4–3 defeat in the series. ^[4]

He earned his 300th win on December 13, 2017, in a game against the New York Islanders by making 32 saves to clinch a 5–2 win. ^[5]

International play

Lehtonen has been selected to play for Finland's youth and national teams on many occasions. He won a bronze medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics. He played in two games, one victory in the preliminary round and a loss in the semi-finals. ^[6]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season											Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	W	L	T	OTL	MIN	GA	SO	GAA	SV%		GP	W	L	MIN	GA	SO	GAA	SV%
1999–2000	Jokerit	FIN U20		33	21	9	3	—	1974	86	2	2.61	.904		12	9	3	758	14	4	1.11	.952
2000–01	Jokerit	FIN U20		31	20	9	1	—	1799	71	3	2.37	.911		1	0	1	54	4	4.44	0	.857
2000–01	Jokerit	SM-l		4	3	1	0	—	190	6	0	1.90	.937		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	Jokerit	FIN U20		6	5	1	0	—	360	11	1	1.83	.944		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	Jokerit	SM-l		23	13	5	2	—	1242	37	4	1.79	.941		11	8	2	623	18	3	1.73	.940
2002–03	Jokerit	SM-l		45	23	14	6	—	2634	87	5	1.98	.928		10	6	4	626	17	2	1.63	.941
2003–04	Chicago Wolves	AHL		39	20	14	2	—	2192	88	3	2.41	.926		10	6	4	663	23	1	2.08	.942
2003–04	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL		4	4	0	0	—	239	5	1	1.25	.953		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2004–05	Chicago Wolves	AHL		57	38	17	2	—	3378	128	5	2.27	.929		16	10	6	983	28	2	1.71	.939
2005–06	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL		38	20	15	—	0	2166	106	2	2.94	.906		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2006–07	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL		68	34	24	—	9	3934	183	4	2.79	.912		2	0	2	118	11	0	5.59	.849
2007–08	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL		48	17	22	—	5	2707	131	4	2.90	.916		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Chicago Wolves	AHL		2	2	0	—	0	124	4	0	1.93	.934		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	Atlanta Thrashers	NHL		46	19	22	—	3	2624	134	3	3.06	.911		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2009–10	Chicago Wolves	AHL		4	1	1	—	2	247	11	0	2.67	.899		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2009–10	Dallas Stars	NHL		12	6	4	—	0	663	31	0	2.81	.911		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	Dallas Stars	NHL		69	34	24	—	11	4119	175	3	2.55	.914		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2011–12	Dallas Stars	NHL		59	32	22	—	4	3497	136	4	2.33	.922		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2012–13	Dallas Stars	NHL		36	15	14	—	3	1986	88	1	2.66	.916		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Dallas Stars	NHL		65	33	20	—	10	3804	153	5	2.41	.919		6	2	4	346	19	1	3.29	.885
2014–15	Dallas Stars	NHL		65	34	17	—	10	3698	181	5	2.94	.903		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2015–16	Dallas Stars	NHL		43	25	10	—	2	2280	105	2	2.76	.906		11	6	3	555	26	1	2.81	.899
2016–17	Dallas Stars	NHL		59	22	25	—	7	3178	151	3	2.85	.902		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2017–18	Dallas Stars	NHL		37	15	14	—	3	1945	83	1	2.56	.912		—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
SM-l totals				72	39	20	8	—	4,066	130	9	1.92	.933		21	14	6	1,249	35	5	1.68	.941
NHL totals				649	310	233	0	67	36,838	1,662	38	2.71	.912		19	8	9	1,019	56	2	3.30	.887

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	W	L	T	MIN	GA	SO	GAA	SV%
2000	Finland	U18		6	5	0	1	307	9	1	1.76	.963
2001	Finland	WJC		1	1	0	0	60	2	0	2.00	.920
2001	Finland	U18		4	3	1	0	239	7	2	1.76	.935
2002	Finland	WJC		6	4	2	0	360	7	1	1.17	.943
2002	Finland	WC		DNP	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2003	Finland	WJC		6	3	2	1	357	13	2	2.19	.923
2003	Finland	WC		DNP	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2004	Finland	WCH		DNP	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2007	Finland	WC		6	4	2	—	374	12	1	1.93	.913
2012	Finland	WC		4	2	2	—	232	11	1	2.85	.894
2014	Finland	OG		2	1	1	—	119	3	0	1.51	.935
Junior totals				23	16	5	2	1323	38	6	1.72	—
Senior totals				12	7	5	—	725	26	2	2.15	.909

Awards and honours

Lehtonen at the 2007 IIHF World Championship
Medal record
Men's ice hockey
Representing   Finland
Olympic Games
	2014 Sochi
World Championships
	2007 Russia
World Cup
	2004 World Cup of Hockey
World Junior Championships
	2001 Russia
	2002 Czech Republic
	2003 Canada
IIHF World U18 Championship
	2000 Switzerland
	2001 Finland

• Urpo Ylönen trophy for best SM-liiga goaltender — 2002 and 2003
• Jari Kurri trophy for best player during the playoffs — 2002
• SM-liiga champion 2002
• 2004 World Cup of Hockey (runner-up)
• Silver Medal in the 2007 IIHF World Championship
• Best Goaltender in the 2007 IIHF World Championship
• Bronze Medal in the 2014 Winter Olympics

Records

• Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader for games played by a goaltender (204). ^[7]
• Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader for victories (94).
• Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader shutouts (14).
• Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader for games played by a goaltender in a single season (68).
• Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader for saves in a single season (1,892).
• Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader for shutouts in a single season (4).
• Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader for starts in a single season (66).
• Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader for minutes played in a single season (3,934).
• Dallas Stars franchise leader for points in a season as a goaltender (6).
• Dallas Stars franchise leader for most career points as a goaltender (23).

Mask history

• While playing for the AHL's Chicago Wolves, the Hamburglar was featured on Lehtonen's mask, an homage to the nickname he received shortly after arriving from Finland and becoming enamoured with McDonald's hamburgers. ^[8]
• He had a depiction of rapper Lil Jon, who is an avid Thrashers fan, on his mask. ^[9]
• In the past, Lehtonen has worn helmets featuring characters Yuna and Rikku from the video game Final Fantasy X-2 , as well as Uma Thurman and Lucy Liu's characters from Kill Bill . Lehtonen, however, is not a video game fanatic; "I've never played it, but I saw a couple of commercials about the game and just thought it looked awesome." ^[10]
• He also had a mask made featuring Optimus Prime from Transformers , which was never worn in a game, only in pre-game warm ups.
• He also wore a mask that showed a depiction of Heath Ledger's Joker character from The Dark Knight , with a stylized ATL featured on the other side.
• His first mask for the Dallas Stars depicted Clint Eastwood's character from the movie The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly .
• His second mask for the Stars featured Chuck Norris. ^[11]
• His former mask for Dallas Stars featured characters and scenes from the movie Tombstone. ^[12]

Personal life

On July 2, 2011, Kari married longtime girlfriend Abbe Schutter in a private ceremony at the Club at Hammock Beach in Palm Coast, Florida. Kari met Abbe while playing in Atlanta. ^[13]

Lehtonen's childhood idol was iconic Finnish goaltender Jarmo Myllys. ^[14]

References

1. "Goalie Lehtonen returns to Thrashers after missing 16 games with groin injury". NHL.com. December 1, 2007. Retrieved March 24, 2018.
2. "Stars make future plans clear, sign Kari Lehtonen to $10.65 million extension". Dallas Morning News. 2010-05-11. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
3. Pinchevsky, Tal (2016-04-11). "Frequent Victories Can Make Room for Two Goalies". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2017-05-11.
4. "Blues cruise by Stars in Game 7". NHL.com. Retrieved 2017-05-11.
5. Compton, Brian (13 December 2017). "Stars score five against Islanders to give Lehtonen 300th win". NHL.com. New York: NHL. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
6. "Player Statistics by Team" (PDF). IIHF . Retrieved May 11, 2017.
7. "Thrashers recall Lehtonen". NHL.com. 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2010-02-10.
8. Supersize me ^{[ permanent dead link ]}
9. Waiting For Stanley: Kari Lehtonen's mask
10. Lehtonen starts again, groin willing
11. "Dallas Stars goalie doesn't wear his Chuck Norris mask, it wears him". Yahoo! Sports . 2012-01-02. Retrieved 2012-01-02.
12. Hutchison, David (January 16, 2011). "KARI LEHTONEN'S NEW TOMBSTONE MASK". ingoalmag.com. Retrieved March 24, 2018.
13. "Wedding Announcement". St. Augustine Record. 2011-07-13. Retrieved 2011-07-13. Kari and Abbe welcomed their first child, a son, in September 2012.
14. Grand Rapids Griffins: E-Griffiti

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

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Jussi Markkanen	Winner of the Urpo Ylönen trophy 2001–02 & 2002–03	Succeeded by Niklas Bäckström
Preceded by Jussi Tarvainen	Winner of the Jari Kurri trophy 2001–02	Succeeded by Esa Pirnes
Preceded by Timo Jutila	Winner of the Kalen Kannu 2001–02	Succeeded by Esa Pirnes
Preceded by Ilya Kovalchuk	Atlanta Thrashers first round draft pick 2002	Succeeded by Jim Slater