Kari Lehtonen

Infobox Ice Hockey Player
team=Atlanta Thrashers
former_teams = SM-liiga
Jokerit
league = NHL


image_size = 200px
position = Goaltender
catches = Left
height_ft = 6
height_in = 4
weight_lb = 205
draft = 2nd overall
draft_year = 2002
draft_team = Atlanta Thrashers
nationality = FIN
birth_date = birth date and age|1983|11|16
birth_place = Helsinki, FIN
career_start = 1999

Kari Lehtonen (born November 16, 1983 in Helsinki, Finland) is a Finnish professional ice hockey goaltender for the Atlanta Thrashers of the National Hockey League. He was selected 2nd overall in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft by the Thrashers, becoming the highest-drafted European goaltender as well as the highest Finnish player ever in NHL history.

Playing career

Kari Lehtonen was drafted second overall in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft by the Atlanta Thrashers after an outstanding 01/02 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, Jari Kurri trophy. Lehtonen stayed with Jokerit for one more season before crossing the sea.

The 2003–04 NHL season Lehtonen mostly spent with the Chicago Wolves, Thrashers' 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. After posting a .953 save percentage and 1.25 GAA, Lehtonen spent the majority of the year in the AHL.

Lehtonen spent the 2004–05 NHL lockout season with the Wolves, adjusting to the North-American playing style. After he playing 57 games for the Wolves, of which he won 38, posting .929 save pct and 2.27 GAA, the Trashers called him up and Lehtonen started the 2005–06 season as the starting goalie for Atlanta. On opening night of the 2005–2006 season, Lehtonen suffered a serious groin injury when Florida Panthers center Nathan Horton collided with Lehtonen. 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 NHL season Kari 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 with an Atlanta hub with more than 250 departures per day, signed Kari Lehtonen as an endorser for the 2006–2007 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 12th, 2007, Lehtonen was the starting goaltender for the Thrashers in their first NHL playoff game.

After a rough start to the 2007 season, Lehtonen suffered another groin injury on October 18, 2007. He would miss sixteen games before returning on December 5, 2007. He finished the season with a respectable save percentage to go along with 4 shutouts but the Thrashers failed to qualify for the playoffs.

Awards

* Urpo Ylönen trophy for best SM-liiga goaltender - 2002 and 2003
* Jari Kurri trophy for best player during the playoffs - 2002
* 2004 World Cup of Hockey (runner-up)
* Best Goalie in the Ice Hockey World Championships in Moscow 2007
* Silver Medal for Hockey World Championships -2007

Records

* Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader for games played by a goaltender (110).Cite web|url=http://www.atlantathrashers.com/View.aspx?CID01=82a63ac0-9a38-40e1-882f-499380ebdf36|title=Lehtonen Primed For Spotlight
accessdate=2007-04-16|publisher=Atlanta Thrashers|year=2007|author=Cooper, Jon]
* Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader for victories (58).
* Atlanta Thrashers franchise leader shutouts (7).
* 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).

Trivia

* Lehtonens boyhood hero is retired Finnish goaltender Jarmo Myllys. [ [http://www.griffinshockey.com/fanzone/egriffiti/index.html?article_id=30 Grand Rapids Griffins: E-Griffiti ] ]
* He had a depiction of Lil Jon, who is an avid Thrashers fan, on his helmet. [ [http://hockey-madness.blogspot.com/2007/01/kari-lehtonens-mask.html Waiting For Stanley: Kari Lehtonen's mask ] ]
* In the past, Lehtonen has worn a helmet featuring characters Yuna and Rikku from the video game Final Fantasy X-2.
* Lehtonens current mask features Uma Thurman and Lucy Liu's characters from Kill Bill.

References

External links

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* [http://www.nhlfinns.com/players.aspx?pid=121 Kari Lehtonen] on nhlfinns.com
* [http://kari.hazza.net Kari Lehtonen] an unofficial website