Kimmo Timonen

{{Infobox ice hockey player

| caption = Timonen with the Philadelphia Flyers in March 2009

| alt =

| image = Kimmo Timonen cropped.jpg

| image_size = 230px

| league = NHL

| position = Defense

| played_for = KalPa
TPS
HIFK
Nashville Predators
HC Lugano
Brynäs IF
Philadelphia Flyers
Chicago Blackhawks

| shoots = Left

| height_ft = 5

| height_in = 10

| weight_lb = 194

| ntl_team = Finland

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1975|3|18}}

| birth_place = Kuopio, Finland

| draft = 250th overall

| draft_year = 1993

| draft_team = Los Angeles Kings

| career_start = 1991

| career_end = 2015

}}

Kimmo Samuel Timonen (born 18 March 1975) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey defenseman who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Nashville Predators, Philadelphia Flyers, and Chicago Blackhawks. Timonen had played in over 1,100 NHL games before retiring. During his career, Timonen had also featured in three IIHF World Junior Championships, seven IIHF World Championships, two World Cups and five Olympic tournaments.{{cite web| url = http://www.eliteprospects.com/player.php?player=2664 | title = Elite Prospects | publisher = Elite Prospects | date = 2015-06-17 | access-date = 2015-06-17}} He won the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2015 in his final career game.

He was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2020.{{cite web|url=https://www.iihf.com/en/news/17847/iihf-hall-of-fame-welcomes-class-of-2020|title=Legends join IIHF Hall of Fame|last=Podnieks|first=Andrew|date=February 4, 2020|website=International Ice Hockey Federation|access-date=February 4, 2020}}

Playing career

Timonen was the youngest player to play for Finland at the 1993 IIHF World Junior Championships at the age of 17. He recorded the second-highest shot total in the tournament with 44.

Timonen was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in the tenth round, 250th overall, of the 1993 NHL Entry Draft. After the draft, he continued to play in his native Finland for several years, first for KalPa and then later for TPS. In 1998, Timonen played on the bronze medal-winning Finnish Olympic team in Nagano. Shortly after the Olympics, the Kings traded him, along with Jan Vopat, to the Nashville Predators organization (the team not yet having begun play) in agreement that Nashville would not select Garry Galley in the 1998 NHL Expansion Draft.

File:Kimmo Timonen 2006.jpg

=With the Nashville Predators =

During the 1998–99 season, Timonen split time between Nashville and their IHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. The following year, he was promoted to a full-time NHL player. He played the next four seasons for the Predators, steadily improving his offensive output, until the 2004–05 NHL lockout. During the lockout, Timonen played for his hometown team, KalPa, which he partly owns with former Flyers teammate Sami Kapanen. Timonen also persuaded his teammate Adam Hall to play for KalPa for the duration of the lockout.

Timonen represented Finland at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey and led his team in scoring with six points, the fifth-highest total overall in the tournament.

On 3 October 2006, Timonen was named the captain of the Nashville Predators for the 2006–07 season.{{cite web| url = https://www.espn.com/nhl/news/story?id=2611966 | title = Preds name Timonen captain, send Radulov to AHL | publisher = ESPN | date = 2006-10-03 | access-date = 2007-10-05}} That season proved to be a career year for Timonen, as he registered career highs in both assists and total points.

=With the Philadelphia Flyers =

Following the 2006–07 season, Timonen was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers. Shortly after, he signed a six-year, $37.8 million contract extension with them, a deal which made him the highest paid Finn in the NHL.{{cite web| url = https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=211182&hubname=nhl | title = Flyers acquire, sign Hartnell and Timonen | publisher = The Sports Network | date = 2007-05-22 | access-date = 2007-06-23}} At the time, Timonen's younger brother Jussi Timonen was playing for the Philadelphia Phantoms, the Flyers' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate. However, Jussi was subsequently traded to the Dallas Stars early in the 2007–08 season.{{cite web|url=http://flyers.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=346081&page=NewsPage&service=page |title=Flyers trade Jussi Timonen to Dallas |website=Philadelphia Flyers |date=2007-10-22 |access-date=2010-02-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080305022601/http://flyers.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=346081&page=NewsPage&service=page |archive-date=2008-03-05 }}

File:Kimmo Timonen 2010-10-07.JPG

The Flyers beat the Washington Capitals 4–3 and the Montreal Canadiens 4–1 in the first two rounds of the 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs. During Game 4 of the Flyers' series with Montreal, Timonen was hit by a wrist shot on his foot by Canadiens defenseman Andrei Markov. Timonen felt numbness in his foot as the week progressed, though believed it to be nothing but a twisted nerve. After an MRI failed to reveal any injury, Timonen had the foot examined at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, where, on 8 May, the doctor found a small blood clot in his foot. He was sidelined indefinitely and missed the first four games of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Timonen returned for Game 5, but the Flyers eventually lost the game and their playoff run came to an end.{{cite web|url=http://flyers.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=362913&page=NewsPage&service=page |title=Timonen Out with Blood Clot |website=Philadelphia Flyers |date=2008-05-08 |access-date=2009-10-02 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080611125256/http://flyers.nhl.com/team/app?articleid=362913&page=NewsPage&service=page |archive-date=2008-06-11 }}

In the 2009–10 regular season, Timonen led all NHL defensemen in shorthanded goals scored, with two.{{cite web| url = https://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_2010_skaters.html | title = 2010 Shorthanded goals | website = hockeyreference.com | date = 2010-04-15 | access-date = 2010-04-15}} That year, Timonen would play in his first ever Stanley Cup Finals, though the Flyers would lose to the Chicago Blackhawks in a six-game series.

Timonen scored his 100th career goal on 5 March 2011, against the Buffalo Sabres. He ended the season in a tie with Marc Staal for most shorthanded goals among defensemen, with two.{{cite web| url = https://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_2011_skaters.html | title = NHL 2011 Skaters | website = hockeyreference.com | date = 2011-03-05 | access-date = 2011-03-05}}

Timonen recorded his 500th career point with an assist on 1 March 2012, against the New York Islanders. He played his 1,000th NHL game on 18 March 2013, his 37th birthday.

File:WellsFargoCenterPhila 35.JPG with the Flyers in March 2014.]]

=Blood clots and Stanley Cup victory with the Chicago Blackhawks =

While preparing for the 2014–15 season, on 5 August 2014, Timonen was diagnosed with blood clots in both of his lungs as well as in his right leg.{{cite news| url = https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nhl/flyers/2014/08/05/kimmo-timonen-blood-clots-philadelphia/13627239/ | title = Flyers' Timonen has blood clots, team signs Del Zotto | newspaper = USA Today | date = 2014-08-05 | access-date = 2014-08-06}} The serious nature of injury ruled Timonen out indefinitely with the Flyers. Approaching the NHL trade deadline, and returning to health after missing the first 62 games of the season, Timonen was traded by the Flyers to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for a 2015 second-round pick and 2016 conditional fourth-round pick on 27 February 2015. He left the Flyers organization as the third most productive defenseman in franchise history, with 270 points in 519 games.{{cite web|url=http://www.csnphilly.com/hockey-philadelphia-flyers/flyers-trade-veteran-defenseman-kimmo-timonen-chicago-blackhawks |title=Flyers trade Kimmo Timonen to Blackhawks |publisher=CSN Philly |date=2015-02-27 |access-date=2015-02-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150228133818/http://www.csnphilly.com/hockey-philadelphia-flyers/flyers-trade-veteran-defenseman-kimmo-timonen-chicago-blackhawks |archive-date=2015-02-28 }} On 21 March 2015, he played in his 1,100th NHL game.{{cite news|author1=Mark Lazerus|title=Kimmo Timonen on playing 1,100 games: 'Usually means you're old'|url=http://chicago.suntimes.com/blackhawks-hockey/7/71/459851/kimmo-timonen-playing-1100-games-usually-means-youre-old|access-date=22 March 2015|publisher=Chicago Suntimes|date=21 March 2015}}

On 5 March, Timonen announced his intent to retire from professional hockey after the 2014–15 season. On 15 June, Timonen won his first Stanley Cup with the Blackhawks in the final game of his 20-year career.{{cite web| url = http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/nhl/kimmo-timonen-retires-from-nhl-1.3114985 | title = Kimmo Timonen retires from NHL | publisher = CBC Sports | date = 2015-06-15 | access-date = 2015-06-16}} During the celebration, Timonen was the first player to receive the Stanley Cup following captain Jonathan Toews. Timonen reflected on his career stating, "I was dreaming about this moment for a long time, and it’s right here. This game has given me so much, and I’m relieved, happy, ready to leave this game, and I’m leaving this game as a Stanley Cup champion."{{cite news |last=Leahy |first=Sean |url=https://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/kimmo-timonen-ends-17-year-nhl-career-as-a-stanley-cup-champion-051629490.html |title=Kimmo Timonen ends 17-year NHL career as a Stanley Cup champion |work=Yahoo! Sports |date=2015-06-16 |access-date=2015-06-16 }} He was the last active player in the NHL from the 1993 NHL entry draft.

In February 2016, President Barack Obama received the winning Blackhawks team in the White House. During his speech, he unexpectedly gave Timonen a laudation:YLE Urheiluruutu, 19 February 2016.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axsU5KTInlw Obama talks to the Blackhawks in 2016]

{{cquote|You all know the big names on this team, seven players were here for all three titles, the guys you’ve heard me talk about twice before, so today I actually wanna give the spotlight to two of the unsung heroes on this team, and they're the kind of guys that are behind the scenes of every winning team in sports and beyond. First there is Kimmo Timonen. Now Kimmo already had a great career before last season. He had been to the Stanley Cup final, Olympic final, World Championship final — he had lost them all… [laughter from the audience] … Just telling the truth… [more laughter] … In August he was diagnosed with blood clots in his lungs and his calf, he wasn’t even sure he’d play again. He was traded to Chicago mid-season, fought back on the ice, his final NHL game, at the age of 40, Kimmo finally hoisted the Cup. And that, first of all, as an old guy, it makes me feel good, but it’s also a sign of a great career when somebody who’s just able to stick with it and consistently contribute and make a huge difference, so give Kimmo a big one!}}

Timonen commented on this to the Finnish state broadcasting company YLE:

{{cquote|This was absolutely a total surprise, and he really made a funny speech, and even to get a mention from him was such an honor for me, and then, of course, when he took a stand on my problems with blood clots, and when you think of what kind of a program I had to go through before I could put my skates on again, it really stirs some powerful feelings in an old man like me, I must admit. And the Stanley Cup victory brought with it some great things that I got to do, and for sure, this was one thing that I absolutely wanted to experience, and I’ll certainly remember this for the rest of my life.}}

Personal life

Kimmo is married to Johanna Timonen and has 3 children.{{cite web| url = http://flyers.nhl.com/v2/ext/2009-10_PHI%20Media%20Guide.pdf | title = 2009-10 Philadelphia Flyers media guide | website = Philadelphia Flyers | date = 2009-10-01 | access-date = 2013-02-04}}

Kimmo announced his retirement after winning the Stanley Cup in 2015 with the Blackhawks.

Timonen owns several restaurants and nightclubs in his hometown of Kuopio.{{cite web|last1=Smith|first1=Lance|url=https://www.thesportster.com/hockey/15-recent-stanley-cup-winners-that-are-out-of-the-league-where-are-they-now/|title=15 Recent Stanley Cup Winners That Are Out Of The League: Where Are They Now?|website=thesportster.com|date=17 January 2017|access-date=14 June 2018|quote=Along with being a family man, Kimmo owns several restaurants and nightclubs in his homeland.}}

Career statistics

=Regular season and playoffs=

border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" style="text-align:center; width:60em"

bgcolor="#e0e0e0"

! colspan="3" bgcolor="#ffffff" |

! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |

! colspan="5" | Regular season

! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |

! colspan="5" | Playoffs

bgcolor="#e0e0e0"

! Season

! Team

! League

! GP

! G

! A

! Pts

! PIM

! GP

! G

! A

! Pts

! PIM

1990–91

| KalPa

| FIN U20

| 4

| 0

| 1

| 2

| —

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1991–92

| KalPa

| FIN U20

| 19

| 3

| 7

| 10

| 2

| —

1991–92

| KalPa

| SM-l

| 5

| 0

| —

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1992–93

| KalPa

| FIN U18

| 3

| 0

| 5

| 0

| —

1992–93

| KalPa

| FIN.2 U20

| 6

| 4

| 10

| 2

| 10

| 3

| 11

| 14

| 8

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1992–93

| KalPa

| SM-l

| 33

| 0

| 2

| 4

| —

1993–94

| KalPa

| FIN.2 U20

| 1

| 2

| 1

| 3

| 0

| 4

| 2

| 6

| 8

| 0

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1993–94

| KalPa

| SM-l

| 46

| 6

| 7

| 13

| 55

| —

1994–95

| TPS

| FIN U20

| 1

| 0

| —

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1994–95

| TPS

| SM-l

| 45

| 3

| 4

| 7

| 10

| 13

| 0

| 1

| 11

1995–96

| TPS

| SM-l

| 48

| 3

| 21

| 24

| 22

| 9

| 1

| 2

| 3

| 12

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1996–97

| TPS

| SM-l

| 50

| 10

| 14

| 24

| 18

| 12

| 2

| 7

| 9

| 8

1997–98

| HIFK

| SM-l

| 45

| 10

| 15

| 25

| 24

| 9

| 3

| 4

| 7

| 8

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1998–99

| Milwaukee Admirals

| IHL

| 29

| 2

| 13

| 15

| 22

| —

1998–99

| Nashville Predators

| NHL

| 50

| 4

| 8

| 12

| 30

| —

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1999–2000

| Nashville Predators

| NHL

| 51

| 8

| 25

| 33

| 26

| —

2000–01

| Nashville Predators

| NHL

| 82

| 12

| 13

| 25

| 50

| —

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2001–02

| Nashville Predators

| NHL

| 82

| 13

| 29

| 42

| 28

| —

2002–03

| Nashville Predators

| NHL

| 72

| 6

| 34

| 40

| 46

| —

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2003–04

| Nashville Predators

| NHL

| 77

| 12

| 32

| 44

| 52

| 6

| 0

| 10

2004–05

| HC Lugano

| NLA

| 3

| 0

| 1

| 0

| —

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2004–05

| Brynäs IF

| SEL

| 10

| 5

| 3

| 8

| —

2004–05

| KalPa

| Mestis

| 12

| 4

| 13

| 17

| 6

| 8

| 3

| 7

| 10

| 4

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2005–06

| Nashville Predators

| NHL

| 79

| 11

| 39

| 50

| 74

| 5

| 1

| 3

| 4

2006–07

| Nashville Predators

| NHL

| 80

| 13

| 42

| 55

| 42

| 5

| 0

| 2

| 4

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2007–08

| Philadelphia Flyers

| NHL

| 80

| 8

| 36

| 44

| 50

| 13

| 0

| 6

| 8

2008–09

| Philadelphia Flyers

| NHL

| 77

| 3

| 40

| 43

| 54

| 6

| 0

| 1

| 12

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2009–10

| Philadelphia Flyers

| NHL

| 82

| 6

| 33

| 39

| 50

| 23

| 1

| 10

| 11

| 20

2010–11

| Philadelphia Flyers

| NHL

| 82

| 6

| 31

| 37

| 36

| 11

| 1

| 5

| 6

| 14

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2011–12

| Philadelphia Flyers

| NHL

| 76

| 4

| 39

| 43

| 46

| 11

| 1

| 3

| 4

| 23

2012–13

| Philadelphia Flyers

| NHL

| 45

| 5

| 24

| 29

| 36

| —

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2013–14

| Philadelphia Flyers

| NHL

| 77

| 6

| 29

| 35

| 32

| 7

| 0

| 1

| 4

2014–15

| Chicago Blackhawks

| NHL

| 16

| 0

| 2

| 18

| 0

| 10

bgcolor="#e0e0e0"

! colspan="3" | SM-l totals

! 272

! 32

! 63

! 95

! 133

! 43

! 6

! 14

! 20

! 39

bgcolor="#e0e0e0"

! colspan="3" | NHL totals

! 1,108

! 117

! 454

! 571

! 654

! 105

! 4

! 31

! 35

! 109

=International=

{{MedalCountry | {{ih|FIN}} }}

border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" style="text-align:center; width:40em"

ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0"

! Year

! Team

! Event

! Result

! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |

! GP

! G

! A

! Pts

! PIM

1992

| Finland

| EJC

| 5th

| 4

| 0

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1993

| Finland

| WJC

| 5th

| 7

| 2

| 0

| 2

| 6

1993

| Finland

| EJC

| 4th

| 6

| 2

| 4

| 2

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1994

| Finland

| WJC

| 4th

| 7

| 3

| 6

| 4

1995

| Finland

| WJC

| 4th

| 7

| 2

| 6

| 8

| 4

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1996

| Finland

| WC

| 5th

| 6

| 0

| 1

| 0

1998

| Finland

| OG

| {{bronze3}}

| 6

| 0

| 1

| 2

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 1998

| Finland

| WC

| {{silver2}}

| 10

| 2

| 6

| 8

| 4

1999

| Finland

| WC

| {{silver2}}

| 10

| 1

| 4

| 5

| 6

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2001

| Finland

| WC

| {{silver2}}

| 9

| 2

| 4

| 10

2002

| Finland

| OG

| 6th

| 4

| 0

| 1

| 2

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2002

| Finland

| WC

| 4th

| 9

| 1

| 2

| 3

| 8

2003

| Finland

| WC

| 5th

| 7

| 2

| 5

| 7

| 2

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2004

| Finland

| WCH

| {{silver2}}

| 6

| 1

| 5

| 6

| 2

2005

| Finland

| WC

| 7th

| 6

| 2

| 1

| 3

| 6

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2006

| Finland

| OG

| {{silver2}}

| 8

| 1

| 4

| 5

| 2

2010

| Finland

| OG

| {{bronze3}}

| 6

| 2

| 4

| 2

bgcolor="#f0f0f0"

| 2014

| Finland

| OG

| {{bronze3}}

| 6

| 0

| 2

| 0

bgcolor="#e0e0e0"

! colspan=4 | Junior totals

! 31

! 9

! 11

! 20

! 16

bgcolor="#e0e0e0"

! colspan=4 | Senior totals

! 93

! 14

! 36

! 50

! 46

Awards

1994 - First Team All-Star selection at the World Junior Ice Hockey Championships
1997 - Matti Keinonen trophy for best +/- in the SM-liiga
Two-time Kanada-malja champion - 1995, 1998 (TPS and HIFK)
2005 - Elected most valuable player in the Mestis playoffs
2005 - Mestis champion (KalPa)
Named to NHL All-Star Game: 2000 (unable to play due to injury), 2004, 2007, 2008, 2012
Five-time Barry Ashbee Trophy winner as Philadelphia Flyers best defenseman – 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014
2015 - Stanley Cup champion (Chicago Blackhawks)
KalPa #44 jersey retired 2016
2020 IIHF Hall of Fame inductee.{{cite web|url=https://kalpa.fi/fi-fi/article/2019-2020/kimmo-timonen-iihfn-hall-of-fame-kunniagalleriaan/4897/|title=Kimmo Timonen IIHF:n Hall of Fame -kunniagalleriaan!|date=5 February 2020|website=KalPa|language=fi|access-date=14 June 2023}} The induction ceremony was scheduled during the 2020 IIHF World Championship, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The IIHF Hall of Fame class of 2020/2022 was inducted during the 2022 IIHF World Championship.{{cite web|url=https://www.iihf.com/en/events/2022/wm/news/36567/hall_of_fame_celebrates_new_recruits|title=Hall of Fame celebrates new recruits|last=Potts|first=Andy|date=29 May 2022|website=International Ice Hockey Federation|access-date=29 May 2022}}

References

External links

{{Ice hockey stats |legends=15112 }}
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdxSOQKXGVA&t=4m14s The President Welcomes the Chicago Blackhawks, 2015 Stanley Cup Champions — Barack Obaman makes a special mention of Timonen at the White House at 4:14], YouTube.

{{succession box | before = Petri Varis | title = Winner of the Matti Keinonen trophy | years = 1996–97 | after = Olli Jokinen}}

{{succession box | before = Greg Johnson | title = Nashville Predators captain | years = 2006–07| after = Jason Arnott}}

Category:1975 births

Category:Brynäs IF players

Category:Chicago Blackhawks players

Category:Finnish ice hockey defencemen

Category:HC Lugano players

Category:HIFK (ice hockey) players

Category:Ice hockey players at the 1998 Winter Olympics

Category:Ice hockey players at the 2002 Winter Olympics

Category:Ice hockey players at the 2006 Winter Olympics

Category:Ice hockey players at the 2010 Winter Olympics