Miikka Kiprusoff
NHL Player Profile: Miikka Kiprusoff Miikka Sakari Kiprusoff; born October 26, 1976, is a former NHL goaltender who played for the San Jose Sharks and the Calgary Flames. Miikka nicknamed Kipper was selected in the fifth round, 116th overall, by the San Jose Sharks in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft.
Kipper who is of Finnish descent began his NHL career on March 5, 2001, when he received a call to join the Sharks to back-up Evgeni Nabokov. He would earn his first NHL win on March 29, in a 7-4 triumph over the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, in relief of starting goaltender Evgeni Nabokov. He would make his first appearance as a starting goaltender when he donned the pads for a matchup against Anaheim, earning himself his second career win.
Kiprusoff made his NHL playoff debut in 2001 when starter Nabokov became ill with the flu. Kipper went between the pipes and came out with a victory, defeating the St.Louis Blues 3-2. The Kipster garnered his first NHL shutout on January 5, 2002, in a 6-0 win over the Florida Panthers.
Miikka struggled mightily during his second season with the Sharks. When Nabokov held out in a contract dispute with Sharks this afforded Mikka the opportunity to become the starting goaltender. Miikka would go on to lose his first three starts and post a whopping 5.65 goals-against average. Miikka won only five games of the 22 games he played that season. His season would end on a disastrous note when he suffered a knee injury.
After seeing more rubber than a dead skunk on the Trans Canada Highway and competing with the San Jose backup (Vesa Toskala) to be the backup goaltender, Miikka was finally traded to the Calgary Flames on November 16, 2003.
Coming to Calgary rejuvenated Kiprusoff. In his first game with the Flames, he recorded a 2-1 win over the Montreal Canadians on November 20, 2003. Kipper began to excel for the Flames, he would win 12 of 17 starts between November 20th and December 29th, allowing one goal or less in 11 of those games.
Kiprusoff would lead the Flamers into the playoffs in 2003-2004 for the first time in eight years. Miikka and the Flames would punch their playoff ticket with a 1-0 win over the Phoenix Coyotes, Kipper and his Flames would receive a thunderous ovation from the playoff starved Flames fans. Kipper and the Flames would go all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2004, only to lose to the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-3 after having a 3-2 series lead. I have to say that that series was one of the best series I have ever watched. The Flames were a team possessed that year, they would defeat Vancouver 4-3, Detroit 4-2, San Jose 4-2 eventually falling to Tampa 4-3.NHL Player Profile: Miikka Kiprusoff
After the conclusion of the 2004 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Kipper would be named a finalist in for the Vezina Trophy, awarded to the best NHL goaltender. Kipper’s numbers were stellar, with a modern NHL goal against of 1.69 and 15 playoff victories, winning five of them by shutouts. Martin Brodeur would win the Vezina that year.
Miikka Kiprusoff playing career would come to an end when the Calgary Flames formally announced his retirement on September 9, 2013. The Kipper would end his NHL career as the Flames’ franchise leader in wins (305), shutouts (41), and games played by a goaltender (576).
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