Kaapo Kähkönen
| Kaapo Kähkönen | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Kähkönen with the Iowa Wild in 2019 | |||
| Born |
16 August 1996 Helsinki, Finland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) | ||
| Weight | 217 lb (98 kg; 15 st 7 lb) | ||
| Position | Goaltender | ||
| Catches | Left | ||
| NHL team Former teams |
San Jose Sharks Espoo Blues Lukko Rauma Minnesota Wild | ||
| NHL Draft |
109th overall, 2014 Minnesota Wild | ||
| Playing career | 2015–present | ||
Kaapo Kähkönen (born 16 August 1996) is a Finnish professional ice hockey goaltender. He is currently playing with the San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League (NHL). Kähkönen was drafted by the Minnesota Wild in the fourth round (109th overall) of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.
Playing career
Kähkönen played as a youth in his homeland within the Espoo Blues organization. He made his professional debut on loan to TUTO Hockey of the Mestis in the 2014–15 season before returning to make his Liiga debut with the Blues during the following 2015–16 Liiga season.
On 13 April 2016, Kähkönen left the Blues in order to be exposed to more playing time. He agreed to a two-year contract with Lukko Rauma.[1]
In the 2017–18 season, Kähkönen produced career best markers in leading the Liiga in games played, minutes and shutouts. Upon completion of his two-year pact with Lukko, Kähkönen agreed to a two-year, entry-level contract with his draft club, the Minnesota Wild, on 17 May 2018.[2]
In his second year in North America, Kähkönen was recalled by the Wild during the 2019–20 season from AHL affiliate, the Iowa Wild, on 20 November 2019.[3] After serving as backup for two games, he became just the fourth Minnesota Wild goalie to be given a start for his NHL debut against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center on 26 November 2019. He made 32 saves, recording his first career victory in a 3–2 win over the Devils.[4] Kähkönen officially conceded his first goal against to Devils' rookie Jesper Boqvist, despite the NHL later admitting error from an incorrect ruling in a coach's challenge review from the Wild.[5]
In the 2020–21 season, Kähkönen became a full time NHL player, serving as the backup to Cam Talbot. Between February 18 and March 16, 2021, he won nine starts in a row, putting up a .947 save percentage and getting two shutouts during the winning streak.[6]
During the 2021–22 season, on 21 March 2022, Kähkönen was dealt at the NHL trade deadline to the San Jose Sharks, in exchange for defenseman Jacob Middleton and a fifth-round draft selection.[7]
As a restricted free agent in the following off-season, Kähkönen was re-signed to a two-year, $5.5 million contract extension with the Sharks on 18 July 2022.[8]
International play
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ice hockey | ||
Representing  Finland
| ||
| World Junior Championships | ||
 |
2016 Helsinki | |
| World U18 Championships | ||
 |
2013 Sochi | |
Kähkönen represented Finland at the 2016 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, where the team won gold.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | OT | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | GP | W | L | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | ||
| 2012–13 | Espoo Blues | Jr. A | 28 | — | — | — | 1676 | 68 | 4 | 2.43 | .917 | 12 | — | — | 628 | 28 | 2 | 2.68 | .901 | ||
| 2013–14 | Espoo Blues | Jr. A | 38 | — | — | — | 2279 | 91 | 3 | 2.39 | .911 | 10 | — | — | 599 | 21 | 0 | 2.10 | .915 | ||
| 2014–15 | TuTo | Mestis | 47 | — | — | — | — | 92 | — | 2.11 | .925 | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | 1.95 | .934 | ||
| 2015–16 | Espoo Blues | Liiga | 27 | 6 | 15 | 5 | 1581 | 71 | 1 | 2.69 | .908 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | TuTo | Mestis | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 | 6 | — | — | — | 18 | — | 3.03 | .885 | ||
| 2016–17 | Lukko | Liiga | 34 | 12 | 12 | 10 | 2020 | 87 | 2 | 2.58 | .921 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Lukko | Liiga | 56 | 20 | 23 | 12 | 3275 | 120 | 6 | 2.20 | .920 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 126 | 5 | 0 | 2.38 | .921 | ||
| 2018–19 | Iowa Wild | AHL | 39 | 17 | 14 | 8 | 2373 | 110 | 6 | 2.78 | .908 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Iowa Wild | AHL | 34 | 25 | 6 | 3 | 2058 | 71 | 7 | 2.07 | .927 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 305 | 15 | 0 | 2.96 | .913 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 24 | 16 | 8 | 0 | 1414 | 68 | 2 | 2.88 | .902 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2021–22 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 25 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1381 | 66 | 0 | 2.87 | .910 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2021–22 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 11 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 566 | 27 | 0 | 2.86 | .916 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Liiga totals | 117 | 38 | 50 | 27 | 6,876 | 278 | 9 | 2.43 | .918 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 126 | 5 | 0 | 2.38 | .921 | ||||
| NHL totals | 65 | 33 | 23 | 5 | 3,666 | 176 | 2 | 2.88 | .908 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | W | L | OT | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Finland | U17 | 7th | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 4.48 | .858 | |
| 2013 | Finland | IH18 | 5th | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 174 | 10 | 0 | 3.45 | .881 | |
| 2014 | Finland | U18 | 6th | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 269 | 15 | 0 | 3.37 | .886 | |
| 2016 | Finland | WJC | 
|
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 214 | 9 | 0 | 2.52 | .909 | |
| Junior totals | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
Awards and honors
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Mestis | ||
| Best Goaltender | 2015 | |
| First All-Star Team | 2015 | |
| Rookie of the Year | 2015 | |
| AHL | ||
| All-Star Game | 2019 | |
| First All-Star Team | 2020 | [9] |
| Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award | 2020 | [10] |
References
- ^ "Kaapo Kahkonen for Lukko" (in Finnish). Lukko Rauma. 13 April 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
- ^ "Wild signs Kahkonen to two-year, entry-level deal". Minnesota Wild. 17 May 2018. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
- ^ "Wild announces roster moves". Iowa Wild. 20 November 2019. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
- ^ "Kahkonen wins NHL debut as Wild edge Devils". The Sports Network. 26 November 2019. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
- ^ "NHL admits error in coach's challenge decision on Devils goal". scoutingtherefs.com. 26 November 2019. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
- ^ "Kaapo Kahkonen Has a Track Record Of Being Streaky". Zone Coverage. 18 March 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
- ^ "Sharks Acquire Kaapo Kahkonen from Minnesota". National Hockey League. 21 March 2022. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
- ^ "Sharks re-sign Goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen". San Jose Sharks. 18 July 2022. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
- ^ "2019-20 AHL First, Second All-Star Team announced". American Hockey League. 20 May 2020. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
- ^ "KAHKONEN NAMED AHL GOALTENDER OF THE YEAR". iowawild.com. Iowa Wild. 26 May 2020. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from
Media related to Kaapo Kähkönen at Wikimedia Commons
 | This biographical article relating to a Finnish ice hockey goaltender is a stub. You can help Justapedia by expanding it. |
- CS1 Finnish-language sources (fi)
- Articles with short description
- Use dmy dates from December 2019
- Commons category link is the pagename
- 1996 births
- Living people
- Espoo Blues players
- Finnish ice hockey goaltenders
- Iowa Wild players
- Lukko players
- Minnesota Wild draft picks
- Minnesota Wild players
- San Jose Sharks players
- Ice hockey people from Helsinki
- TuTo players
- Ice hockey players at the 2012 Winter Youth Olympics
- Youth Olympic gold medalists for Finland
- All stub articles
- Finnish ice hockey goaltender stubs