Jonathan Lekkerimäki
| Jonathan Lekkerimäki | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
24 July 2004 Huddinge, Sweden | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||
| Weight | 172 lb (78 kg; 12 st 4 lb) | ||
| Position | Right wing | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| NHL team (P) Cur. team Former teams |
Vancouver Canucks Abbotsford Canucks (AHL) Djurgårdens IF Örebro HK | ||
| NHL draft |
15th overall, 2022 Vancouver Canucks | ||
| Playing career | 2021–present | ||
Jonathan Lekkerimäki (born 24 July 2004) is a Swedish professional ice hockey right winger for the Abbotsford Canucks of the American Hockey League (AHL) on loan as a prospect from the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted 15th overall by the Canucks in the 2022 NHL entry draft.
Playing career
[edit]Lekkerimäki made his professional debut for Djurgårdens IF during the 2021–22 season, where he recorded seven goals and two assists in 26 games. This made Lekkerimäki the second most-productive 17-year-old goal-scorer in SHL history after Peter Forsberg, who had seven goals in 23 games.[1] He also appeared in 26 games for Djurgårdens' J20 team where he recorded 20 goals and 15 assists. He missed the last month of the season due to mononucleosis.[2]
On 1 July 2022, Lekkerimäki was drafted in the second round, 70th overall, by the Vancouver Giants in the CHL Import Draft.[3] Opting to remain in Sweden and continue his development with Djurgårdens first season in the Allsvenskan in 2022–23, Lekkerimäki recorded three goals and six assists in 29 games before missing the remainder of the regular season due to injury. Returning for the playoffs, he recorded at a point-per-game pace through 15 games, before falling short of promotion to the SHL in a game 7 finals defeat to Modo Hockey.
On 6 May 2023, Lekkerimäki signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Vancouver Canucks.[4] In order to continue his progress in development, Lekkerimäki left Djurgårdens and signed a two-year contract with SHL club, Örebro HK, on loan from the Canucks on 16 May 2023.[5]
During the 2023–24 season, he recorded 19 goals and 12 assists in 46 games. Following the season he was named SHL Rookie of the Year,[6] won the Elite Prospects Award as top SHL junior-aged player,[7] and at the European Hockey Awards he won the Young Player of the Year Award.[8]
On 25 March 2024, he was assigned to the Abbotsford Canucks of the AHL.[9]
International play
[edit]| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  Sweden
| ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| World Junior Championships | ||
 |
2024 Sweden | |
 |
2022 Canada | |
| World U18 Championships | ||
 |
2022 Germany | |
Lekkerimäki represented Sweden at the 2022 IIHF World U18 Championships where he led the tournament in scoring with five goals and ten assists in six games and won a gold medal.[1]
Lekkerimäki represented Sweden at the 2024 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships where he led the team in scoring and recorded seven goals and three assists in seven games and won a silver medal. He scored the game-winning-goal against Team Czechia to send Team Sweden to the gold medal game.[10] He was subsequently named tournament MVP.[11]
Personal life
[edit]Lekkerimäki is of Finnish descent through his Finnish grandmother, who had moved to Sweden from Kuusamo, Finland, in the 1960s.[12]
Career statistics
[edit]Regular season and playoffs
[edit]| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2019–20 | Djurgårdens IF | J18 | 58 | 30 | 15 | 45 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Djurgårdens IF | J18 | 8 | 12 | 4 | 16 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2020–21 | Djurgårdens IF | J20 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2021–22 | Djurgårdens IF | J20 | 26 | 20 | 15 | 35 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2021–22 | Djurgårdens IF | SHL | 26 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2022–23 | Djurgårdens IF | J20 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2022–23 | Djurgårdens IF | Allsv | 29 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 4 | 15 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 2 | ||
| 2023–24 | Örebro HK | SHL | 46 | 19 | 12 | 31 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2023–24 | Abbotsford Canucks | AHL | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| SHL totals | 72 | 26 | 14 | 40 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||||
International
[edit]| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Sweden | HG18 | 
|
5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 4 | |
| 2022 | Sweden | U18 | 
|
6 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 4 | |
| 2022 | Sweden | WJC |
|
7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2023 | Sweden | WJC | 4th | 7 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | |
| 2024 | Sweden | WJC | 
|
7 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 0 | |
| Junior totals | 32 | 18 | 19 | 37 | 12 | ||||
Awards and honours
[edit]| Award | Year | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|
| SHL | |||
| Rookie of the Year | 2024 | [13] | |
| International | |||
| World Junior Championship MVP | 2024 | [11] | |
| World Junior Championship Media All-Star Team | 2024 | ||
References
[edit]- ^ a b Aykroyd, Lucas (26 April 2022). "Lekkerimaki shoots to thrill". IIHF.com. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
- ^ Morreale, Mike G. (19 June 2022). "Top International skaters discussed ahead of 2022 NHL Draft". NHL.com. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
- ^ "Giants add 2 European Forwards at CHL Import Draft". vancouvergiants.com. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
- ^ "Canucks sign Jonathan Lekkerimäki to three-year, entry-level contract". Vancouver Canucks. 6 May 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
- ^ "Welcome, Jonathan Lekkerimäki" (in Swedish). Örebro HK. 16 May 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
- ^ Miller, Max (8 May 2024). "Canucks Prospects: Jonathan Lekkerimäki Headed Back To Abbotsford; Wins SHL Rookie Of The Year". The Hockey News. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
- ^ "Jonathan Lekkerimäki takes home 2024 Elite Prospects Award as top junior player in SHL". Elite Prospects. 1 May 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
- ^ O'Brien, Derek (11 June 2024). "European Hockey Awards: Jonathan Lekkerimäki & Valtteri Filppula among winners". The Hockey News. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
- ^ Miller, Max (25 March 2024). "Jonathan Lekkerimäki Joins Canucks In Abbotsford". The Hockey News. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
- ^ Clipperton, Joshua (4 January 2024). "Canucks prospect Jonathan Lekkerimaki leads Sweden over Czechia in world junior semis". The Toronto Star. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
- ^ a b "Lekkerimaki named MVP". IIHF.com. International Ice Hockey Federation. 5 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
- ^ Kaikkonen, Janne (13 December 2019). "Suomi kohtaa Ruotsin viikonloppuna Kuusamossa - Alle 16-vuotiaiden maaottelu oppina paikallisillekin: "Tämä antaa junioreille perspektiiviä siitä missä alle 16-vuotiaissa huipulla mennään"". Koillissanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ^ "Årets Rookie 2023/24: Jonathan Lekkerimäki, Örebro". shl.se (in Swedish). 8 May 2024. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
External links
[edit]- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or The Internet Hockey Database