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Post Info TOPIC: Article about Niinimaa


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Article about Niinimaa
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http://www.cyberpresse.ca/article/20061002/CPSPORTS01/610020960/1006/CPSPORTS01


 


About a year ago, Janne Niinimaa was considered the main pillar on defense for the Islanders with Alexei Zhitnik. Eight months later he was cooloing his heals in the stands with the Dallas Stars, because his play left alot to desire. So what happen over the winter, and which of the two Niinimaas did the Canadiens get?

Stéphane Robidas played with him for a few months in Dallas at the end of last season and gives him the benefit of the doubt.


"His ankle was not in good shape when we got him from the Islanders in January. We could sense that he uncomfortable on the ice. He was having alot of trouble during practices playing one on one. He would hesitate to charge into the corners because of his injury. He was under alot of pressure to impress  management, who obtained him in order to permit the team to go further in the playoffs, but he could not do himself justice.You would have to believe it was true because this summer, the doctors operated on him and they quickly found that it wasn't pretty. There were broken bones everywhere. He should have been operated on sooner."


Robidas rediscovered a different defenseman this September.  "He had a very good camp. We could see that he was more solid than last season, he scored 2 goals in 4 exhibition games and he had a plus/minus of (+1)."

So why trade Niinimaa- who participated in the all star game in 2001- amongst the 8 defensemen still in camp? "The management already had made plans over the summer. They got Jaroslav Modry, who played for Dave Tippett in Los Angeles, and Darryl Sydor who had won a Stanley Cup before with the Stars, so they weren't going to trade them after just getting them. So if you exclude Sergei Zubov and Philippe Boucher, that left Trevor Daley, Jon Klemm, Niinimaa and me. Niinimaa was the highest paid at 2,5 millions. Therefore I believe that it was simple to calculate. There was not enough cap money to get Ribeiro and his 1,9 millions against mine at $500 000  or go over the cap."

Janne Niinimaa started his career in 1996 with the Flyers, who made him their 2nd round draft choice 3 years previously. This Finnish player got 44 points in his very first season, which won him a selection as for the Recruit All Star Team. Five years later he was traded to Edmonton for Dan McGillis and then to the Islanders for Raffi Torres and Brad Isbister.

This 31 year old defenseman on average played 23 minutes per game on Long Island when he ran into a wall last season. Joel Bouchard who was with the Islanders said "He's a guy who plays very tough, who never hesitates giving someone the stick  in front of the net and took lots of penalties at the beginning of last season. He may have had difficulty adapting to the new rules last season, at least during the first few weeks of the season. But I cannot make a judgement on his play because I lost track of him, but I can say he is a good guy because he was my roomate during training camp."

Stéphane Robidas beleives that dispite the disappointment of last season, the Canadiens obtained a good defenseman. "He is a guy, who during his good years, was an excellent skater with a great shot. He is big at 220lbs.. He is very capable of taking his man. He moves the puck well and can play in any situation."

A Recruiter who recalls seeing Niinimaa playing for the Islanders says that the Habs got the best of this deal. "Any time you can trade a forward for a defenseman, you improve your team. He will bring another dimension to the power play with his shot. He doesn't always give 100 % in each game, he is not rough, but he is intelligent. He uses his long reach. Niinimaa, is a big plus compared to Mark Streit who is actually considered the 6th defenseman on the team"

Niinimaa has nearly always played between 23 and 26 minutes p/game during his career, except for last season when it fell to just below 20 minutes.



-- Edited by Fatherhab at 15:50, 2006-10-02

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Looks good, let's hope it holds true.

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Interview with Niinimaa:



http://www.cyberpresse.ca/article/20061002/CPSPORTS01/61002108/1006/CP SPORTS01



 



Niinimaa: "I am Staved"



François Lemenu



Presse Canadienne



Mont-Tremblant





Janne Niinimaa isn't coming to Montreal in order to complete the defensive team. The Finnish player, who the Habs got from Dallas in a trade for Ribeiro, expects to play an important role with his new team.



" I want to contribute to the success of the team" he said on Monday. I play both ends of the ice, I can play on the powerplay and I can kill penalties. I have always played 20-25 minutes per game for the last 10 years."



"I am very motivated, I am starved" he added. I am sure that I have a place here. But I don't want to talk, I want to show".




The CBC internet site is very severe towards the new Montreal Defenseman during its analysis of this trade.

«Niinimaa, it reads, suffers from brain cramps in the defensive zone. He never realized his potenetial offensively. He is a player who is on the decline in all categories of his play."



Niinimaa, who is 6'1 et 220 lbs, shpuld form a duo with Mathieu Dandenault. He says he is in excellent shape after undergoing surgery to repair torn ligaments in his left ankle.



"Last season was difficult in Dallas" he said. " I was always in pain and could not give a full effort". In 63 games, he scored 3 goals and 13 assists for a total of 16 points, his weakest performance in the NHL.



"I am in good health today. I had a good camp in Dallas where I returned to form." He scored 2 goals in four exhibition games.



A Reputation



Niinimaa, who is 31, has a réputation that he is a hard player to coach. He took the opportunity in his first meeting with the media to set the record straight.



" It was said that I had a dispute with my old Islander coach Steve Stirling. It was nothing. We exchanged some big words when he thought I said something. That was not the case, and we quickly reconciled. I swear I always got along with him."



Niinimaa admits that he had problems with the Finnish National Team coach at the World Championships. "That coach lost it totally. He was insulting and scornful towards the players, secretaries and trainers. It was something that I found intolerable, and I could not accept that from him. That is why I left the team."

A Flyers Draft Choice



Niinimaa was the first pick of the Flyers and the 36th overall pick of the 1993 Draft. He played there for 2 years before being traded to Edmonton. "I had good seasons in Edmonton."



Niinimaa was then traded to the Islanders and then last January to Dallas.



"I did not expect to leave the Stars. I had a good meeting with the coach (Dave Tippett) and the General Manager (Doug Armstrong) before training camp. Everything was positive. But the team had 8 defensemen, and I lost out because of my salary.

Niinimaa only has two training sessions with the Habs to get familiarized with their system.



"I would have prefered to have played at least one exhibition game. "But I learn quick" he said.



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http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/hockey/stars/stories/092106dnspostarslede.2ab1e30.html


 


His ankle is strong again, but he's amid a glut of defensemen



01:09 AM CDT on Thursday, September 21, 2006


By MIKE HEIKA / The Dallas Morning News



Janne Niinimaa knows his standing with the Stars is shaky. But he also knows he's standing on two strong ankles for once.


The veteran defenseman is one of eight blueliners on the Stars' roster with an NHL contract. That's one more than most teams will carry during the regular season. Niinimaa is well aware one defenseman could be traded before the season begins Oct. 4.


"I think we're all aware of the situation," said Niinimaa, 31, "but we all also know that there's not much that we can do about it other than play our best."


Niinimaa said he believes he can play his best this year, as his surgically repaired right ankle is finally starting to feel better. The ankle bothered him much of last season. It was clear after a Jan. 10 trade from the New York Islanders that he wasn't the same player who tallied 46 and 44 points in consecutive seasons with Edmonton in the early 2000s.


"This is a game that's played with agility, and a big part of his game is agility," Stars coach Dave Tippett said. "I think we'll get a true read on him now."


Niinimaa became a whipping boy among Stars fans not only for his play (only six points and a minus-5 rating in 22 games) but for his apparent bad luck around the team. After acquiring Niinimaa, the Stars were 10-11-1 with him in the lineup and 13-1-2 when he was hurt or a healthy scratch. Niinimaa started the playoffs as a healthy scratch and played the final four games.


"It was just a season to forget," he said. "I'm feeling much better now, and I feel like I can play my game."


Stars general manager Doug Armstrong isn't tipping his hand and said he might enter the season with all eight defensemen. But that would allow for only one extra forward under the NHL's maximum roster of 23. That would probably prevent the team from carrying 22 players, as it did much of last season to save salary cap space.


Still, Tippett said he is looking at using all eight defensemen and is evaluating all players with the assumption they are staying. It's the only smart way to do things, he said.


Niinimaa is following a similar line of thought. He plays hard and well and either stays or is traded.


"If I'm healthy and play well, things will work out for the best," he said.


Backup goalies split time: Dan Ellis and Mike Smith, fighting for the backup goalie spot, shared time in Wednesday night's 3-2 loss to Phoenix. Ellis, who gave way to Smith at 12:25 of the second period, allowed two goals to Owen Nolan. A third-period goal by Jaroslav Modry tied the score at 2, but the Coyotes got the clincher from Michael Zigomanis with 9:44 left.


"We'll keep plugging along with them," said Stars coach Dave Tippett. "We have a couple more [preseason] games, and we'll see where it goes."


Lindros scores: Former MVP and six-time All-Star Eric Lindros started the game and scored a goal at 18:38 of the first period to tie the score at 1-1. Tippett said the main goal is to put Lindros, who hasn't played much the past two seasons, "in position to get his feet moving. He was much better tonight."


Short-handed success: The Stars held the Coyotes scoreless in nine short-handed situations. Modry's goal gave Dallas a 1-for-8 power-play night.



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