Sami Vatanen is a Finnish ice hockey defenseman. Being part of the national junior teams, and captaining the team in the 2009 U18 World Championship.

He was drafted by 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...

 in 2009 NHL Entry Draft

2009 NHL Entry Draft

The 2009 NHL Entry Draft was the 47th Entry Draft. It was held on June 26–27, 2009 at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. The Draft was part of the Montreal Canadiens centennial celebrations. National Hockey League teams took turns selecting amateur ice hockey players from junior, collegiate, or...

. In the following season, he achieved a spot in JYP, the defending Finnish champions. He broke a record for most points by a rookie defenseman in both regular season and playoffs.

In 2010, Vatanen represented Finland internationally at the junior level (2010 World Junior Championships

2010 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships

The 2010 IIHF World U20 Championship, commonly referred to as the 2010 World Junior Hockey Championships , was the 34th edition of World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. The tournament was hosted in Saskatoon and Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, from December 26, 2009 to January 5, 2010...

 held in Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

) and at the senior level (2010 World Championships

2010 IIHF World Championship

The 2010 IIHF World Championship was the 74th IIHF World Championship, an annual international ice hockey tournament. It took place between 7 and 23 May 2010 in Germany. The games were played in the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, SAP Arena in Mannheim, and one game at Veltins-Arena in Gelsenkirchen...

 held in Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

).

He also was the highest-drafted Finnish player in KHL history, drafted 2nd overall in the 2010 KHL Junior Draft

2010 KHL Junior Draft

The 2010 KHL Junior Draft was the second entry draft held by the Kontinental Hockey League , taking place on June 4, 2010. Ice hockey players from around the world aged between 17 and 21 years of age were selected. Players eligible to take part in the draft were required to not have an active...

 by HC Metallurg Novokuznetsk.

Awards and honours

External links