Janne Niinimaa

Janne Niinimaa
Date of birth	May 22, 1975
place of birth	Raahe , Finland
size	185 cm
Weight	100 kg
position	defender
Shot hand	Left
Draft
NHL Entry Draft	1993 , 2nd lap, 36th position Philadelphia Flyers
Career stations
until 1993	Kärpät Oulu
1993-1996	Jokerit Helsinki
1996-1998	Philadelphia Flyers
1998-2003	Edmonton Oilers
2003-2006	New York Islanders
2004-2005	Kärpät Oulu Malmö Redhawks
2006	Dallas Stars
2006-2007	Montréal Canadiens
2007-2008	HC Davos
2008-2009	SCL Tigers
2009-2010	HV71
2010-2011	Luleå HF
2011–2012	Rapperswil-Jona Lakers
2012-2013	Asplöven HC

Janne Henrik Niinimaa (born May 22, 1975 in Raahe ) is a former Finnish ice hockey player who has played in the National Hockey League for the Philadelphia Flyers , Edmonton Oilers , New York Islanders , Dallas Stars and Canadiens de Montréal, among others .

Career

Niinimaa started his career in the Finnish SM-Liiga at Jokerit Helsinki . The 1993 NHL Entry Draft was 36th in the second round of the Philadelphia Flyers . He spent three more seasons in Helsinki and then moved to North America in 1996 for the Philadelphia Flyers (NHL). In his first NHL season, he received a place on the all-rookie team. From the Flyers he was exchanged for the Edmonton Oilers in the 1997/98 season . In 2001 he was able to participate in the NHL All-Star game . He played for the Oilers until the 2002/03 season , in which he was exchanged for the New York Islanders . In 2004/05 he returned to Finland and played for Oulun Kärpät , with whom he was able to achieve the Finnish championship. He also played in Malmo , Sweden that season . After the lockout, he returned to the New York Islanders, who traded him to the Dallas Stars in the 2005/06 season . On September 30, 2006 Niinimaa moved to the Canadiens de Montréal in exchange for Mike Ribeiro , but he could not prevail there and was only used in 41 games. He did not get a new contract in the NHL and therefore moved to the Swiss record champions HC Davos before the 2007/08 season . Since his contract at HCD was not extended and he could not find a new employer at first, he kept fit in Finland at Oulun Kärpät. On November 27, 2008 he was signed by the SCL Tigers until the end of the year to replace the injured Curtis Murphy .

In August 2009 Niinimaa was signed by HV71 for a year. A year later he moved to Luleå HF after the contract expired within the Elitserien . From November 2011 he was initially under contract for one month with the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers in the Swiss National League A. He then let his career end with the Swedish second division Asplöven HC .

International

Niinimaa played at the Winter Olympics in 1998 and 2002 and won gold with Finland at the 1995 World Cup .

Achievements and Awards

• 1994 Finnish champion with Jokerit
• 1996 Finnish champion with Jokerit
• 1997 NHL All-Rookie Team
• 2001 NHL All-Star Game
• 2005 Finnish champion with Oulun Kärpät
• 2010 Swedish champion with HV71
• 2011 Spengler Cup win with HC Davos
• 2014 admission to the Finnish Ice Hockey Hall of Fame

International

• 1995 gold medal at the world championship
• 1998 bronze medal at the Olympic Winter Games
• 2000 bronze medal at the world championship
• 2004 2nd place at the World Cup of Hockey

NHL statistics

	Seasons	Games	Gates	Assists	Points	Penalty minutes
Regular season	10	741	54	265	319	733
Playoffs	8th	59	3	21st	24	60

Web links

• Janne Niinimaa at eliteprospects.com (English)
• Janne Niinimaa at hockeydb.com (English)
• Janne Niinimaa at legendsofhockey.net (English)
• Janne Niinimaa at eurohockey.com

Individual evidence

1. ↑ hockeyfans.ch, SCL: Niinimaa is coming, time remains
2. ↑ lakers.ch, Janne Niinimaa comes to Rapperswil