Pekka Rinne
| Pekka Rinne | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Born |
November 3, 1982 Kempele, FIN | ||
| Height | 6 ft 5 in (196 cm) | ||
| Weight | 205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb) | ||
| Position | Goaltender | ||
| Shoots | Left | ||
| NHL team | Nashville Predators | ||
| National team |
 Finland | ||
| NHL draft |
258th overall, 2004 Nashville Predators | ||
| Playing career | 2001–present | ||
Pekka Rinne (born November 3, 1982) is a Finnish professional hockey goaltender currently playing for the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League (NHL).
Playing career
Rinne was developed in Kärpät playing predominantly for their junior team between 2000–2003 and after that, for their men's team in championship-winning years 2004 and 2005, mostly as a backup of Niklas Bäckström.
Rinne was drafted 258th overall in the 8th round of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by the Nashville Predators. He was signed by the Predators on August 23, 2005 and began his North American playing career with the Predators' top minor league affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. Initially Rinne was slated to be the backup for Brian Finley but, with Finley's disappointing play, Rinne was able to take the starting goaltending job. But, during the summer of 2006, Rinne was "roughed up by a couple of unknown assailants" and during the fight he dislocated his shoulder. As a result, he had to have surgery and missed the first four months of the season.
Rinne appeared in two NHL games with the Nashville Predators during the 2005–06 season. He compiled a record of 1–1–0 with a .900 save percentage and a GAA of 3.80.
Following Dan Ellis's stellar performance in the 2007-2008 Nashville Predators campaign, starter Chris Mason was traded to the St. Louis Blues and Rinne was called up to serve as back-up to Ellis for the 2008-09 season.
On December 1, 2008, Rinne became only the second Predators rookie goaltender ever to record a shutout. In February 2009, Rinne recorded nine wins in twelve games and had a 0.944 save percentage and a 1.72 goals against average. He was selected as the NHL rookie of the month.[1] On March 14, Rinne set a Predators franchise record with his seventh shutout of the season.[2] Rinne stand's for Finland's goaltender in 2009 World Championship hockey, with the other one being Karri Rämö. Rinne started the tournament with a shutout in his first game in the Finnish national hockey team, saving 30 shots.
In the 2010-11 season opener, Rinne allowed a goal before colliding with Ducks forward Troy Bodie and suffering a lower-body injury. Anders Lindback relieved him and went on to start three games before Rinne returned, only to go down again in December. Since returning Dec. 23, however, Rinne has remained healthy and put up some of the better numbers of his career, including a 1.71 GAA and .946 save percentage in the month of January.
Career statistics
Regular season
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | T | OTL | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002–03 | Kärpät | FNL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 60 | 7 | 0 | 7.00 | .788 |
| 2003–04 | Kärpät | FNL | 14 | 5 | 4 | 4 | — | 824 | 41 | 0 | 2.99 | .897 |
| 2004–05 | Kärpät | FNL | 10 | 8 | 0 | 1 | — | 572 | 16 | 0 | 1.68 | .927 |
| 2005–06 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | 51 | 30 | 18 | 2 | — | 2960 | 139 | 2 | 2.82 | .904 |
| 2005–06 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 2 | 1 | 1 | — | 0 | 63 | 4 | 0 | 3.80 | .900 |
| 2006–07 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | 29 | 15 | 7 | 6 | — | 1670 | 65 | 3 | 2.34 | .920 |
| 2007–08 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | 65 | 36 | 24 | 3 | — | 3840 | 158 | 5 | 2.47 | .908 |
| 2007–08 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 |
| 2008–09 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 52 | 29 | 15 | — | 4 | 2999 | 119 | 7 | 2.38 | .917 |
| 2009–10 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 58 | 32 | 16 | — | 5 | 3246 | 137 | 7 | 2.53 | .911 |
| NHL totals | 113 | 62 | 32 | 0 | 9 | 6337 | 260 | 14 | 2.46 | .914 | ||
Playoffs
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003–04 | Kärpät | FNL | 2 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 |
| 2005–06 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | 14 | 10 | 4 | 734 | 35 | 3 | 2.86 | .905 |
| 2006–07 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | 4 | 0 | 4 | 247 | 12 | 0 | 2.91 | — |
| 2007–08 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | 6 | 2 | 4 | — | 15 | 1 | 2.51 | .923 |
| 2009–10 | Nashville Predators | NHL | 6 | 2 | 4 | 358 | 16 | 0 | 2.68 | .911 |
References
- ^ "Predators' Rinne named NHL Rookie of the Month". NHL.com. Retrieved 19 March 2009.
- ^ "Rinne sets shutout record as Predators win in Phoenix". The City Paper. Retrieved 19 March 2009.
External links
