| Ville Nieminen | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 6, 1977 Tampere, FIN |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight | 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb) |
| Position | Left wing |
| Shoots | Left |
| KHL team Former teams |
Dinamo Riga KHL HC Sibir Novosibirsk Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk SM-liiga Tappara NHL Colorado Avalanche Pittsburgh Penguins Chicago Blackhawks Calgary Flames New York Rangers San Jose Sharks St. Louis Blues |
| National team | Finland |
| NHL Draft | 78th overall, 1997 Colorado Avalanche |
| Playing career | 1999–present |
Ville Nieminen (born April 6, 1977) is a Finnish professional ice hockey forward currently playing for Örebro HK in the swedish second division, Hockeyallsvenskan
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Nieminen started his professional hockey career with 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 the rink, whose style is heavily reminiscent of Esa Tikkanen. Nieminen has a relaxed personality outside the rink and his odd sense of humour 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 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 colour commentator due to his sense of humour and knowledge of the game.
On February 27, 2007, he was traded to the St. Louis Blues. His contract expired in July, and he signed a two-year contract with the Malmö Redhawks, then of the Swedish Allsvenskan.[1] After a single season Nieminen returned to his native land signing with original club Tappara of the SM-liiga.
On June 16, 2010, Nieminen signed a one-year contract with Russian team, HC Sibir Novosibirsk, of the KHL.[2]
On May 6, 2011, Nieminen has been announced as the new player of KHL’s Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk.[3]
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1994–95 | Tappara | SM-l | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1995–96 | Tappara | SM-l | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | Tappara | SM-l | 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-l | 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 | 30 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Malmö Redhawks | Swe-1 | 34 | 9 | 15 | 24 | 124 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | ||
| 2008–09 | Tappara | SM-l | 55 | 21 | 20 | 41 | 82 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Tappara | SM-l | 50 | 15 | 14 | 29 | 142 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 16 | ||
| 2010–11 | HC Sibir Novosibirsk | KHL | 53 | 12 | 23 | 35 | 62 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | ||
| NHL totals | 385 | 48 | 69 | 117 | 333 | 58 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 99 | ||||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitor for Finland | ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| Men's Winter Olympics | ||
| Silver | 2006 Turin | |
| World Cup | ||
| Silver | 2004 Toronto | |
| Year | Team | Comp | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Finland | WJC | 6 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 2 |
| 2002 | Finland | OG | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 2004 | Finland | WCH | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2006 | Finland | OG | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Junior int'l totals | 6 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 2 | ||
| Senior int'l totals | 14 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||