Mikko Vainonen

Mikko Vainonen (born 11 April 1994) is a Finnish professional ice hockey defenceman who was last under contract with Glasgow Clan in the Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL).

Early life Mikko Vainonen was a hard-working defenceman in his childhood. He played a lot of floorball with his friends in residential Helsinki.

Playing career He made his professional debut playing with HIFK of the SM-liiga during the 2011–12 SM-liiga season. He was selected in the fourth round, 118th overall, of the 2012 NHL entry draft by the Nashville Predators. In the following season and pursuit of his NHL ambition, he moved to North America to play major junior after he was drafted in the 2012 CHL import draft in the 1st round, 6th overall by the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League.

On 24 May 2013, he was signed to a three-year entry-level contract with the Nashville Predators. Vainonen split time between Nashville's farm teams the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League and the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL over the next two seasons, before being loaned to Liiga's SaiPa to finish the 2014–15 season.

At the start of the 2015–16 NHL season Vainonen and Nashville agreed to mutually terminate his contract, allowing him to seek employment elsewhere. He returned to his native Finland, coming to terms with Ässät Pori of the top-tier Liiga.

After parts of two seasons with German club Krefeld Pinguine of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga, Vainonen returned to the Liiga, securing a one-year deal with his fourth Finnish club, Vaasan Sport, on 29 March 2018.

On June 19, 2019, Vainonen opted to continue in the EBEL agreeing to a one-year contract with the Dornbirn Bulldogs.

In a COVID-19 affected 2020–21 season, Vainonen played for Orli Znojmo, HC Frýdek-Místek, and Italian side SG Cortina.

In August 2021, Vainonen agreed terms with Scottish EIHL side Glasgow Clan for the 2021–22 season.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2011–12 HIFK Liiga 8 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 2012–13 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 55 4 18 22 42 4 2 1 3 2 2013–14 Kingston Frontenacs OHL 57 4 14 18 73 7 1 3 4 8 2013–14 Milwaukee Admirals AHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 2014–15 Cincinnati Cyclones ECHL 31 0 5 5 16 — — — — — 2014–15 SaiPa Liiga 19 0 1 1 14 7 0 2 2 33 2015–16 Ässät Liiga 39 1 5 6 63 — — — — — 2016–17 Ässät Liiga 15 0 1 1 6 — — — — — 2016–17 Krefeld Pinguine DEL 28 4 1 5 34 — — — — — 2017–18 Krefeld Pinguine DEL 44 1 3 4 45 — — — — — 2018–19 Vaasan Sport Liiga 11 0 2 2 18 — — — — — 2018–19 Orli Znojmo EBEL 28 6 11 17 18 5 2 2 4 12 2019–20 Dornbirn Bulldogs EBEL 50 3 10 13 38 — — — — — 2020–21 Orli Znojmo Czech 2.Liga 1 1 2 3 2 — — — — — 2020–21 HC Frýdek-Místek Chance Liga 5 0 0 0 8 — — — — — 2020–21 SG Cortina AlpsHL 19 1 5 6 35 5 0 2 2 4 2020–21 SG Cortina Italy 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 2021–22 Glasgow Clan EIHL 44 3 9 12 46 — — — — — Liiga totals 92 1 9 10 103 7 0 2 2 33

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2011 Finland U17 7th 5 0 2 2 10 2012 Finland WJC18 4th 7 0 4 4 8 2014 Finland WJC 7 0 2 2 4 Junior totals 19 0 8 8 22