Ville Koistinen

Ville Koistinen
Born June 17, 1982
Oulu, FIN
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
NLA team
Former teams 		HC Davos
Nashville Predators
Florida Panthers
Skellefteå AIK
Salavat Yulaev Ufa
Ilves
National team  Finland
NHL Draft Undrafted
Playing career 1998–present

Ville Koistinen (born July 17, 1982) is a Finnish professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing with HC Davos in NLA.

Playing career

Undrafted, Koistinen played professionally in his native Finland with Ilves Tampere of the SM-liiga for 6 seasons. On May 18, 2006, Koistinen signed with the Nashville Predators of the NHL.[1] Koistinen made his North American debut in the 2006–07 season, playing with the Predators affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. He was chosen to AHL-All Star Classic that year scoring 9 goals and 41 points in 59 games.

Koistinen signed 1-year contract with Predators for the 2007–08 . Koistinen scored his first NHL goal against Fredrik Norrena of the Columbus Blue Jackets in a 4-3 victory on December 27, 2007.[2] Koistinen established 17 points by season end.

After his second season with the Predators in 2008–09, Koistinen signed a two-year contract with the Florida Panthers on July 1, 2009.[3]

On November 25, the Florida Panthers placed Koistinen on waivers.[4] Koistinen cleared waivers on November 26 and was sent to Florida's AHL affiliate in Rochester, New York.[5]

His contract was bought out in the summer, leaving Koistinen as a free agent. He signed 1-year contract back to Europe and to Swedish Elitserien club, Skellefteå AIK. Club placed second overall by losing Elitserien finals to Färjestads BK.

To 2011-2012 season Koistinen signed one of the biggest contracts so far in Finnish elite league SM-liiga by signing 7-year deal with Ilves Tampere. During regular season after 28 games scoring 7 goals and 17 points, KHL team Salavat Yulajev Ufa signed Koistinen to 2-year deal. He's contract with Ilves Tampere continues after the 2-year KHL contract.

In 2013 Koistinen elected to sign a 1-year contract with HC Davos of the National League A. In 2014 Koistinen chose to revoke his contract with Ilves Tampere and signed a 3-year extension with HC Davos until 2017.

Koistinen participated World Ice Hockey Championships 2007, 2008 and 2009 and helped team Finland to silver medal in 2007 and bronze medal in 2008.

Career statistics

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2000–01 Ilves Tampere SM-l 6 0 0 0 0 5 0 1 1 0
2001–02 Ilves Tampere SM-l 53 1 8 9 42 — — — — —
2002–03 Ilves Tampere SM-l 18 4 1 5 8 — — — — —
2003–04 Ilves Tampere SM-l 54 7 16 23 51 7 0 2 2 0
2004–05 Ilves Tampere SM-l 52 6 14 20 69 3 0 0 0 0
2005–06 Ilves Tampere SM-l 56 8 26 34 70 4 0 1 1 2
2006–07 Milwaukee Admirals AHL 59 9 32 41 44 4 0 2 2 4
2007–08 Nashville Predators NHL 48 4 13 17 18 — — — — —
2008–09 Nashville Predators NHL 38 3 8 11 14 — — — — —
2009–10 Florida Panthers NHL 17 1 3 4 8 — — — — —
2009–10 Rochester Americans AHL 8 1 1 2 4 — — — — —
2010–11 Skellefteå AIK SEL 31 4 8 12 28 — — — — —
2011–12 Ilves Tampere SM-l 28 7 10 17 18 — — — — —
2011–12 Salavat Yulaev Ufa KHL 3 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 2
2011–12 Ilves Tampere SM-l 49 7 7 14 38 — — — — —
2013–14 HC Davos NLA 28 7 10 17 18 6 0 3 3 2
NHL totals 103 8 24 32 40 — — — — —

References

  1. ↑ "Predators sign Fiddler, Koistinen". Nashville Predators. 2006-05-18. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
  2. ↑ "Koistinen's impressive game leads Predators over Blue Jackets". CBS Sports. 2007-12-27. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
  3. ↑ "Koistinen inks two-year deal with Cats". Florida Panthers. 2009-07-01. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
  4. ↑ "Koistinen waived". Sun-Sentinel. 2009-11-25. Retrieved 2009-11-25.
  5. ↑ "Florida Panthers' Ville Koistinen sent to Rochester for more playing time". Miami Herald. 2009-11-28.

External links