Lauri Tukonen (born September 1, 1986) is a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

player who currently plays for

Lukko Rauma Rauman Lukko (Finnish for "lock") is a Finnish sports club based in Rauma, Finland, best known for its men’s professional ice hockey team. The club was founded as Rauma Woodin Lukko in 1936. The representative team currently plays in the Fin ...

of the Finnish

Liiga The SM-liiga (marketed as just Liiga from 2013 on), (Finnish for ''League'') colloquially called the Finnish Elite League in English or FM-ligan in Swedish, is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. It is one of the six founding lea ...

. Tukonen has played in North America for the

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...

organization and is a former member of Finnish clubs,

Espoo Blues The Espoo Blues were an ice hockey team in the SM-liiga. They played in Espoo, Finland, at the Espoo Metro Areena. The club went bankrupt at the end of the 2015–16 Liiga season. History The club was established in February 1984 as Kiekko-Espoo ...

Ilves Ilves (; Finnish for "Lynx") is a Finnish professional ice hockey team based in Tampere. They play in the Liiga at the Tampere Deck Arena. The colors of Ilves, green, yellow, and black, were taken from what was then the coat of arms of the cit ...

and TPS.

Playing career

Lauri Tukonen was selected by the

as their first pick, 11th overall, in the

2004 NHL Entry Draft The 2004 NHL Entry Draft was the 42nd NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 26 and 27, 2004 at the RBC Center in Raleigh, North Carolina. It is especially notable because it was the last NHL event to take place before the beginning of the lockout ...

. He started his pro career with the Blues in the Finnish

SM-liiga The SM-liiga (marketed as just Liiga from 2013 on), (Finnish for ''League'') colloquially called the Finnish Elite League in English or FM-ligan in Swedish, is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. It is one of the six founding leagu ...

. During the 2003–04 season, he was the youngest player in the league, at 17 years old. He then played for the Manchester Monarchs in AHL, earning a promotion when he was recalled to the

on February 21, 2007, and played his first NHL game a day later against the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...

. He was sent back to Manchester on February 23 and was then recalled again on February 17, 2008, where he was later sent back on February 21. In March 2008 he became an alternate captain of the Monarchs. On July 21, 2008, he was traded to the

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and were founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minne ...

in exchange for Richard Clune. He played in his native Finland during the start of the 2008–09 season with

Ilves Tampere Ilves (; Finnish for " Lynx") is a Finnish professional ice hockey team based in Tampere. They play in the Liiga at the Tampere Deck Arena. The colors of Ilves, green, yellow, and black, were taken from what was then the coat of arms of the cit ...

. Five months later on November 30, 2008, he was traded by the Stars to the

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They play th ...

for Andrew Hutchinson.

International play

Tukonen has represented Finland at several World Junior Hockey Championship tournaments, winning a bronze medal at the 2004 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. His performance at the 2004 World U18 Championships bolstered his draft prospects, when he tied for first in scoring with 11 points and tied for first in assists with 6 assists. He led Team Finland in scoring, along with teammates Lauri Korpikoski and

Petteri Nokelainen Petteri Antti Nokelainen (born January 16, 1986) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey forward who played over 200 games in the National Hockey League (NHL). He concluded his professional career in returning to his original club, SaiPa of ...

, also with 11 points each. Tukonen scored the game-winner to collect another bronze at the

2006 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships The 2006 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships (''2006 WJHC'') were held in Vancouver, Kelowna and Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada. The championships began on December 26, 2005, and finished on January 5, 2006. Games were played at GM Place ...

, where he placed third on the tournament top scorers' list, second in assists, and second in plus-minus rating.

Awards

* Bronze medal at the World Junior Championships in 2004 and 2006. * Named to the World Junior Championships Media All-Star Team in 2006.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tukonen, Lauri 1986 births Espoo Blues players Finnish ice hockey right wingers Ilves players Living people Los Angeles Kings draft picks Los Angeles Kings players Lukko players Manchester Monarchs (AHL) players National Hockey League first-round draft picks People from Hyvinkää HC TPS players Sportspeople from Uusimaa