Ville Nieminen
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Position | Left wing |
| Shoots | Left |
| Height Weight |
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) |
| NHL Team F. Teams |
San Jose Sharks New York Rangers Calgary Flames Chicago Blackhawks Pittsburgh Penguins Colorado Avalanche |
| Nationality |  Finland |
| Born | April 6, 1977, Tampere, Finland |
| NHL Draft | 78th overall, 1997 Colorado Avalanche |
| Pro Career | 1999 – present |
| Olympic medal record | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Men's Ice hockey | |||
| Silver | 2006 Turin | Ice hockey | |
Ville Nieminen (born April 6, 1977 in Tampere, Finland) is a Finnish professional ice hockey forward for the San Jose Sharks of the NHL.
Nieminen started his professional hockey career in Tappara in the Finnish SM-liiga, in the 1994-95 season. He was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche as their third-round pick, #78 overall, in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft. Nieminen spent three seasons in the AHL with the Hershey Bears, and moved to the NHL and won the Stanley Cup with the Avalanche in 2001.
Known for his non-stop motor and aggressive in-your-face style of play, Nieminen is an annoying opponent in rink, whose style is heavily reminiscent of Esa Tikkanen. You'll never see Ville on the ice without an evil grin on his face. Nieminen has a relaxed personality outside the rink and his odd sense of humor is his trademark.
Nieminen has played for several teams in the NHL, and spent the 2004-05 lockout season playing for his home team, Tappara. He signed with the New York Rangers for the 2005-06 NHL season, and was traded to San Jose on March 8, 2006.
He has represented Finland in international play at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, and when he was unable to compete at the 2005 IIHF World Championships, he provided commentary on Finnish television with fellow NHL player Tuomo Ruutu. Ville is a popular color commentator due to his sense of humor and knowledge of the game.
Nieminen's two-year contract worth US$1.4 million expires in July 2007. He will be an unrestricted free agent.
[edit] Career statistics
| Regular Season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1994-95 | Tappara | SM-liiga | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1995-96 | Tappara | SM-liiga | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1996-97 | Tappara | SM-liiga | 49 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 120 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 1997-98 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 74 | 14 | 22 | 36 | 85 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1998-99 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 67 | 24 | 19 | 43 | 127 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1999-00 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 74 | 21 | 30 | 51 | 54 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | ||
| 1999-00 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2000-01 | Hershey Bears | AHL | 28 | 10 | 11 | 21 | 48 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2000-01 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 50 | 14 | 8 | 22 | 38 | 23 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 20 | ||
| 2001-02 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 53 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 30 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2001-02 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 13 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2002-03 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 75 | 9 | 12 | 21 | 93 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2003-04 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 60 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 40 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2003-04 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 19 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 18 | 24 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 55 | ||
| 2004-05 | Tappara | SM-liiga | 26 | 14 | 13 | 27 | 32 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 12 | ||
| 2005-06 | New York Rangers | NHL | 48 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 53 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2005-06 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 22 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 10 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 24 | ||
| 2006-07 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 14 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 12 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| NHL Totals | 355 | 48 | 68 | 116 | 302 | 58 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 99 | ||||
Stats as of November 18, 2006
[edit] International play
- Played for Team Finland in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey.
- Silver medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics.
International statistics
| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Finland | WCH | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2006 | Finland | Olympics | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
[edit] External links
- Ville Nieminen on nhlfinns.com
Categories: 1977 births | 2001 Colorado Avalanche Stanley Cup Championship Team | Calgary Flames players | Chicago Blackhawks players | Colorado Avalanche draft picks | Colorado Avalanche players | Finnish ice hockey players | Finnish Stanley Cup winners | Hershey Bears players | Hockey players at the 2006 Winter Olympics | Stanley Cup champions | New York Rangers players | Olympic competitors for Finland | Olympic silver medalists for Finland | Pittsburgh Penguins players | San Jose Sharks players | SM-liiga players | Tappara players | Winter Olympics medalists | Living people | People from Tampere
