Toni Lydman
Encyclopedia
Toni Lydman is a Finnish
professional ice hockey
defenceman with the Anaheim Ducks
of the National Hockey League
. He has previously played for the Buffalo Sabres
, Calgary Flames
, Tappara
(Sm-liiga
), and HIFK
(SM-liiga
). He lives with his wife Heta and his two daughters, Amanda and Ellen. Lydman is also a guitarist in the band Mononen, which was started by some friends of his.
. He spent four seasons playing in Finland's SM-liiga
for Tappara
in Tampere
and HIFK
in Helsinki
before making his NHL debut for the Flames in the 2000–01 NHL season.
His best season came in 2001-02, when he scored 28 points on 6 goals and 22 assists, tying for fifth for his team in assists and sixth in points scoring.
In the 2002–03 NHL season, Lydman led his defense in points with 26 and managed to remain injury-free the whole season, only missing one game due to illness. Calgary made it to the Stanley Cup
finals in the 2003–04 NHL season, but Lydman missed most of their playoff campaign due to injury.
During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, which wiped out the entire 2004–05 NHL season, Lydman returned to Helsinki for HIFK but only managed to play eight games.
On August 25, 2005, Lydman was traded from Calgary to the Buffalo Sabres
for a third-round draft pick (John Armstrong
) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft
,
In the 2007-2008 season, Lydman had the 16th most hits in the league for a defenceman.
He is also known for his steady neutral zone play.
Having lost the Olympic final (2006), World Championship final (1998, 1999), World Cup final (2004) and Stanley Cup final (2004), Lydman and his fellow countrymen Jarkko Ruutu
, Kimmo Timonen
and Sami Salo
, are the only members of the unofficial "Quadruple Silver Club", a somewhat humorous reference to the Triple Gold Club
and the unofficial "Quadruple Gold Club" for players who have won the most important championships available to the sport.
On July 1, 2010 signed as a UFA with the Anaheim Ducks for $9 million over three years. His Ducks debut was delayed until mid-October because of problems with double vision
.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
defenceman with the Anaheim Ducks
Anaheim Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California, USA. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
of the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
. He has previously played for the Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:...
, Calgary Flames
Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...
, Tappara
Tappara
Tappara is an ice hockey team in the SM-liiga. They play in Tampere, Finland at Tampereen jäähalli. The team have won 15 league championships ....
(Sm-liiga
SM-liiga
The SM-liiga is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. As of March 2008, it is ranked by the IIHF as the second strongest league in Europe. It was created in 1975 to replace the SM-sarja, which was fundamentally an amateur league. The SM-liiga is not directly overseen by the Finnish Ice...
), and HIFK
HIFK (ice hockey)
HIFK is an ice hockey team based in Helsinki, Finland. The team plays at Helsinki Ice Hall. It was founded in 1897...
(SM-liiga
SM-liiga
The SM-liiga is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. As of March 2008, it is ranked by the IIHF as the second strongest league in Europe. It was created in 1975 to replace the SM-sarja, which was fundamentally an amateur league. The SM-liiga is not directly overseen by the Finnish Ice...
). He lives with his wife Heta and his two daughters, Amanda and Ellen. Lydman is also a guitarist in the band Mononen, which was started by some friends of his.
Playing career
Lydman was drafted by Calgary in the fourth round, 89th overall at the 1996 NHL Entry Draft1996 NHL Entry Draft
The 1996 NHL Entry Draft was held at the Kiel Center in St. Louis, Missouri, on June 22, 1996.- Selections by round :Club teams are located in North America unless otherwise noted.- Round one :- Round two :...
. He spent four seasons playing in Finland's SM-liiga
SM-liiga
The SM-liiga is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. As of March 2008, it is ranked by the IIHF as the second strongest league in Europe. It was created in 1975 to replace the SM-sarja, which was fundamentally an amateur league. The SM-liiga is not directly overseen by the Finnish Ice...
for Tappara
Tappara
Tappara is an ice hockey team in the SM-liiga. They play in Tampere, Finland at Tampereen jäähalli. The team have won 15 league championships ....
in Tampere
Tampere
Tampere is a city in southern Finland. It is the most populous inland city in any of the Nordic countries. The city has a population of , growing to approximately 300,000 people in the conurbation and over 340,000 in the metropolitan area. Tampere is the third most-populous municipality in...
and HIFK
HIFK (ice hockey)
HIFK is an ice hockey team based in Helsinki, Finland. The team plays at Helsinki Ice Hall. It was founded in 1897...
in Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
before making his NHL debut for the Flames in the 2000–01 NHL season.
His best season came in 2001-02, when he scored 28 points on 6 goals and 22 assists, tying for fifth for his team in assists and sixth in points scoring.
In the 2002–03 NHL season, Lydman led his defense in points with 26 and managed to remain injury-free the whole season, only missing one game due to illness. Calgary made it to the Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
finals in the 2003–04 NHL season, but Lydman missed most of their playoff campaign due to injury.
During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, which wiped out the entire 2004–05 NHL season, Lydman returned to Helsinki for HIFK but only managed to play eight games.
On August 25, 2005, Lydman was traded from Calgary to the Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:...
for a third-round draft pick (John Armstrong
John Armstrong
John Armstrong was an American civil engineer and soldier who served as a major general in the Revolutionary War. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress for Pennsylvania...
) in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft
2006 NHL Entry Draft
The 2006 NHL Entry Draft was the 44th NHL Entry Draft. It was held at General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on June 24, 2006.The draft order for the first 14 picks was decided during a lottery held on April 20, 2006....
,
In the 2007-2008 season, Lydman had the 16th most hits in the league for a defenceman.
He is also known for his steady neutral zone play.
Having lost the Olympic final (2006), World Championship final (1998, 1999), World Cup final (2004) and Stanley Cup final (2004), Lydman and his fellow countrymen Jarkko Ruutu
Jarkko Ruutu
Jarkko Ruutu ; born August 23, 1975) is a Finnish professional ice hockey player. Ruutu is currently playing for SM-Liiga team Jokerit. He is the brother of Tuomo Ruutu, currently playing in the NHL on the Carolina Hurricanes, and retired player Mikko Ruutu....
, Kimmo Timonen
Kimmo Timonen
Kimmo Timonen is a Finnish professional ice hockey defenseman and an alternate captain for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League .-Playing career:...
and Sami Salo
Sami Salo
Sami Salo is a Finnish professional ice hockey defenceman with the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League . He began his professional career with TPS of the SM-liiga before being selected by the Ottawa Senators with their last pick in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft. He joined the Senators in...
, are the only members of the unofficial "Quadruple Silver Club", a somewhat humorous reference to the Triple Gold Club
Triple Gold Club
The Triple Gold Club is a term used to describe ice hockey players and coaches who have won an Olympic Games gold medal, a World Championship gold medal, and the Stanley Cup, the championship trophy of the National Hockey League...
and the unofficial "Quadruple Gold Club" for players who have won the most important championships available to the sport.
On July 1, 2010 signed as a UFA with the Anaheim Ducks for $9 million over three years. His Ducks debut was delayed until mid-October because of problems with double vision
Diplopia
Diplopia, commonly known as double vision, is the simultaneous perception of two images of a single object that may be displaced horizontally, vertically, or diagonally in relation to each other...
.
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season Season (sports) In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an... |
Team | League | GP | G Goal (ice hockey) In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to... |
A Assist (ice hockey) In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal... |
Pts Point (ice hockey) Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one... |
PIM Penalty (ice hockey) A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,... |
GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1996–97 | Tappara Tappara Tappara is an ice hockey team in the SM-liiga. They play in Tampere, Finland at Tampereen jäähalli. The team have won 15 league championships .... |
FNL SM-liiga The SM-liiga is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. As of March 2008, it is ranked by the IIHF as the second strongest league in Europe. It was created in 1975 to replace the SM-sarja, which was fundamentally an amateur league. The SM-liiga is not directly overseen by the Finnish Ice... |
49 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 65 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 1997–98 | Tappara | FNL | 48 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 48 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1998–99 | HIFK HIFK Idrottsföreningen Kamraterna i Helsingfors is a sports club from Helsinki, Finland. Formed in 1897 HIFK is the oldest IFK club in Finland. The club has activities in many sports, including football, ice hockey, bandy, floorball, handball, athletics and bowling. HIFK Soccer ry is part of the... |
FNL | 42 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 36 | 11 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 1999–00 | HIFK | FNL | 46 | 4 | 18 | 22 | 36 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 6 | ||
| 2000–01 | Calgary Flames Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the... |
NHL National Hockey League The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States... |
62 | 3 | 16 | 19 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 79 | 6 | 22 | 28 | 52 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 81 | 6 | 20 | 26 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 67 | 4 | 16 | 20 | 30 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2004–05 | HIFK | FNL | 8 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2005–06 | Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:... |
NHL | 75 | 1 | 16 | 17 | 82 | 18 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 18 | ||
| 2006–07 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 67 | 2 | 17 | 19 | 55 | 18 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 55 | ||
| 2007–08 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 82 | 4 | 22 | 26 | 74 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 2008–09 NHL season The 2008–09 NHL season was the 92nd season of operation of the National Hockey League . It was the first season since prior to the 2004–05 lockout in which every team played each other at least once during the season, following three seasons where teams only played against two divisions in the... |
Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 80 | 3 | 20 | 23 | 70 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 2009–10 NHL season The 2009–10 NHL season was the 93rd season of operation of the National Hockey League , and the 100th season since the founding of the predecessor National Hockey Association . It ran from October 1, 2009, including four games in Europe on October 2 and 3—until April 11, 2010, with the 2010... |
Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 67 | 4 | 16 | 20 | 30 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 2010–11 2010–11 NHL season The 2010–11 NHL season was the 94th season of operation of the National Hockey League . It was the fourth consecutive season that opened in Europe with NHL Premiere . A record three events were scheduled, all in previous NHL Premiere cities: Helsinki, Finland; Stockholm, Sweden; and Prague, Czech... |
Anaheim Ducks Anaheim Ducks The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California, USA. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League... |
NHL | 78 | 3 | 22 | 25 | 42 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| NHL totals | 738 | 36 | 187 | 223 | 493 | 52 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 42 | ||||
Awards
- Pekka Rautakallio trophyPekka Rautakallio trophyThe Pekka Rautakallio trophy is an ice hockey award given by the Finnish SM-liiga to the best defenceman of the season.-Trophy winners:*1977-78: Pekka Rautakallio *1978-79: Pekka Rautakallio *1979-80: Reijo Ruotsalainen...
for best defenceman in the SM-liigaSM-liigaThe SM-liiga is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. As of March 2008, it is ranked by the IIHF as the second strongest league in Europe. It was created in 1975 to replace the SM-sarja, which was fundamentally an amateur league. The SM-liiga is not directly overseen by the Finnish Ice...
- 2000 - Silver MedalSilver medalA silver medal is a medal awarded to the second place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and contests with similar formats....
Winner at the 2006 Winter Olympics2006 Winter OlympicsThe 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...
in Men's Ice HockeyIce hockey at the 2006 Winter Olympics-Leading scorers:-Leading goaltenders:Goalkeepers with 40% or more of their team's total minutes.-Awards:Antero Niittymäki was named the most valuable player and received the Directorate Award for best goaltender of the tournament. Directorate Awards also went to Teemu Selänne for best forward, and... - Bronze MedalBronze medalA bronze medal is a medal awarded to the third place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The practice of awarding bronze third place medals began at the 1904 Olympic Games in St...
Winner at the 2010 Winter Olympics2010 Winter OlympicsThe 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...
in Men's Ice HockeyIce hockey at the 2010 Winter OlympicsIce hockey at the 2010 Winter Olympics was held at Canada Hockey Place, home of the National Hockey League's Vancouver Canucks, and at UBC Winter Sports Centre, home of the Canadian Interuniversity Sport's UBC Thunderbirds. Twelve teams competed in the men's event and eight teams competed in the...