Joni Pitkänen

Joni Pitkänen (born 19 September 1983) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Philadelphia Flyers, Edmonton Oilers, and Carolina Hurricanes.

Playing career Pitkänen started his pro hockey career in the Kärpät organization in the Finnish SM-liiga. After three seasons there he crossed the Atlantic to play for the Philadelphia Flyers, who drafted him in the 2002 NHL entry draft with their first round draft pick (fourth overall). After a good opening season that saw Pitkänen cement his place on the team lineup, where he was ranked second among NHL rookies with 12 powerplay assists and 17 powerplay points, he played for the Philadelphia Phantoms during the 2004–05 NHL lockout when the team won the Calder Cup. When the NHL resumed in 2005, Pitkänen returned to the Flyers and became the team's top-scoring defenseman, recording 46 points in 58 games. However, he was hampered by injuries during the second half of the season.

When Pitkänen came to the United States to play for the Philadelphia Flyers, he hardly spoke a word of English, so teammate and fellow Finn Sami Kapanen translated for him, and eventually taught him English.

On 14 July 2006, Pitkänen signed a one-year, $2 million contract with Philadelphia. A key member of the Flyers' powerplay unit, Pitkänen was tied for second in powerplay scoring in 2006–07 with 18 points and led Philadelphia with 17 powerplay assists. The 23-year-old defenseman led in ice time in each of the last two seasons with Philadelphia.

Pitkänen was ranked among the NHL’s top 25 defensemen in scoring in each of the first two seasons following the 2004–05 NHL lockout. His 43 points in 2006–07 ranked him 22nd, while his career-high 46 points in 2005–06 placed him 19th. He was also among the 2006–07 NHL blueline leaders in assists (16th) and ice time (20th with 24:32 minutes per-game).

On 1 July 2007, Pitkänen was traded to the Edmonton Oilers along with Geoff Sanderson and a third round draft choice in the 2009 NHL entry draft in exchange for Jason Smith and Joffrey Lupul. On 20 July 2007, Pitkänen signed a one-year contract with the Oilers. With the Oilers, Pitkänen scored 26 points in 63 games.

On 1 July 2008, Pitkänen was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Erik Cole. On 2 July 2008, Pitkänen signed a three-year, $12 million contract with the Carolina Hurricanes as a restricted free agent.

On April 2, 2013, during a contest with the Washington Capitals, Pitkänen suffered an injury to his heel following a race to reach an iced puck. The following year the NHL would change the icing rules to use hybrid icing to help avoid similar incidents.

The injury he received caused Pitkänen to miss entire 2013-14 season, his last under contract to the Hurricanes.

In early December 2014 it was reported that Pitkänen had started light training with Oulun Kärpät of the Finnish Liiga, skating for the first time since his injury.

On February 5, 2016, it was announced that Pitkänen had signed a deal with Oulun Kärpät for the rest of the season. He played his first game in almost three years on February 6 against KalPa. On February 25, 2016, Pitkänen announced he would retire once more from ice-hockey after playing three games with Oulun Kärpät.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1999–2000 Kärpät FIN U18 36 12 14 26 26 6 1 4 5 2 1999–2000 Kärpät FIN U20 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 2000–01 Kärpät FIN U20 24 6 11 17 77 — — — — — 2000–01 Kärpät SM-l 21 0 0 0 10 2 0 0 0 2 2001–02 Kärpät FIN U20 — — — — — 1 0 0 0 0 2001–02 Kärpät SM-l 49 4 15 19 65 4 0 0 0 12 2002–03 Kärpät SM-l 35 5 15 20 38 — — — — — 2003–04 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 71 8 19 27 44 15 0 3 3 6 2004–05 Philadelphia Phantoms AHL 76 6 35 41 105 21 3 4 7 16 2005–06 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 58 13 33 46 78 6 0 2 2 2 2006–07 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 77 4 39 43 88 — — — — — 2007–08 Edmonton Oilers NHL 63 8 18 26 56 — — — — — 2008–09 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 71 7 26 33 58 18 0 8 8 16 2009–10 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 71 6 40 46 72 — — — — — 2010–11 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 72 5 30 35 60 — — — — — 2011–12 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 30 5 12 17 16 — — — — — 2012–13 Carolina Hurricanes NHL 22 1 8 9 12 — — — — — 2015–16 Kärpät Liiga 3 1 0 1 2 — — — — — Liiga totals 108 10 30 40 115 6 0 0 0 14 NHL totals 535 57 225 282 484 39 0 13 13 24

International

Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2001 Finland U18 4 0 2 2 6 2002 Finland WJC 7 1 3 4 0 2003 Finland WJC 7 1 5 6 0 2010 Finland OG 5 1 2 3 29 Junior totals 18 2 8 10 6 Senior totals 5 1 2 3 29

Awards 2003–04: All-Rookie Team (NHL) 2003–04: Played in the YoungStars Game (NHL) 2004–05: Calder Cup (Philadelphia Phantoms) 2005–06: Barry Ashbee Trophy (Philadelphia Flyers) 2005–06: Pelle Lindbergh Memorial (Philadelphia Flyers)