Dwight Helminen

Dwight Helminen ( born June 22, 1983 in Hancock, Michigan ) is an American professional ice hockey player of Finnish origin, in the Finnish SM- liiga plays since 2010 at the Lahti Pelicans on the position of the center. His brother Lars Helminen is also a professional hockey player.

• 3.1 International

Career

Helminen played between 1999 and 2001 initially in the U.S. National Team Development Program of the U.S. Ice Hockey Federation USA Hockey in the United States Hockey League and North American Hockey League. In his first year he played 30 games for both the U18 team in the NAHL as well as for the first team in the USHL. He was able to record a total of 29 points scorer and recommended to maintaining a regular place in the first selection of the association. This he received the following season when he only once in the North American Hockey League was used and 24 games completed in the United States Hockey League. He rose, after twelve points in the previous year, on 19 Following his time in the program of USA Hockey of the 18 -year-old joined in the summer of 2001 for three years at the University of Michigan. There he began studying and playing at the same time for the university team in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association, a division in the game operation of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. DC in his rookie year, he won with the team the championship of the CCHA, which he contributed 18 points in 39 games. After his first year of college, the center in the NHL Entry Draft in 2002 was selected in the eighth round when a total of 244 players from the Edmonton Oilers. However, Helminen remained two more years at Yale, where he was first elected to the All- Tournament team in the league in 2003 and a year later the Championship win of 2002 repeated. In addition, he was elected in his final year at the best defensive striker in the CCHA and his transfer rights were issued on 3 March 2004, along with goalkeeper Stephen Valiquette and a second-round vote in NHL Entry Draft 2004 for Petr Nedvěd and Jussi Markkanen to the New York Rangers. In total he scored in three seasons at Yale 80 points in 119 games.

For the season 2004 /05 Helminen joined the professional field and came in his first year for the farm team of the New York Rangers, the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League and the Charlotte Checkers in the ECHL, is used. The Checkers in the ECHL the defensive striker completed 28 games and knew with 21 points to set the tone in the offensive. For the Wolfpack, the rookie played 41 times and posted nine points scorer. In the following two seasons until the summer of 2007, he ran on in the AHL exclusively for Hartford. His best year he played in the game 2005 /06 when he scored 55 points scorer, scoring an impressive 32 goals. However, these values ​​he could not reach approximate, whereupon his expiring contract was not renewed by the Rangers the following season with 39 points and 15 goals.

The attacker then attended a contract offer from JYP Jyvaskyla of the Finnish SM- liiga, with which he was active in a European league for the first time. In the home of his parents Helminen graduated in the 2007/ 08 season 52 final rounds and six playoff games in which he recorded a total of 51 points. His younger brother Lars was this season also for the Finnish club in action.

In summer 2008, Helminen already returned back to North America because all the Carolina Hurricanes had submitted a contract offer for over a year. This was true for both the National Hockey League and American Hockey League. First, he started the season for the Hurricanes farm team, the Albany River Rats in the AHL. Still in the first quarter of the season, the striker was appointed to the NHL squad and was late October 2008 his debut for Carolina. Following the temporary secondment back to the AHL, he returned in March 2009, returned to the Hurricanes. At the end of the season he came on NHL 23 missions and 54 in the AHL. While he scored 30 points for Albany, he could score a goal for Carolina and prepare another. Before the start of the 2009/10 season the San Jose Sharks took the free agent contract. This put him in the course of the season to February in the AHL with the Worcester Sharks one, before he was appointed for the first time in the NHL squad San Jose just before the Olympic break.

Internationally

At the international level Helminen took the U.S. national team at the U18 World Youth Championship 2001 and the U20 World Junior Championships in 2002 and 2003. He reached in any of the three tournaments a medal rank. Only at the U18 World Youth Championship, he was elected to the All- Star team of the tournament.

Awards and achievements

• 2001 All- Star team the U18 World Youth Championship
• 2002 CCHA Championship with the University of Michigan
• 2003 CCHA All- Tournament Team
• 2004 CCHA Championship with the University of Michigan
• 2004 CCHA Best Defensive Forward

Career Stats

Internationally

Represented the U.S. at:

• U18 Junior World Championship 2001
• U20 Junior World Cup 2002
• U20 Junior World Championship 2003

( Key to Career statistics: Sp or GP = Games Played, T or G = goals scored, V or A = achieved assists; Pts or Pts = scored points scorer, SM or PIM = received penalty minutes, / - = Plus / Minus balance sheet; PP = scored majority gates; SH = scored shorthanded goals, GW = achieved victory gates; Play-downs/Relegation 1 )