Olli Jokinen News: Pro Sports Daily

Now on Rangers' top line, Jokinen feels centered

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March 16

New York Daily News

"Olli Jokinen believes he strayed from his strengths while aligned with star Jarome Iginla earlier this season in Calgary. It's something he's been trying to avoid repeating while successfully centering the Rangers' top line in recent games. "Three games now we've played (together), and I'm starting to get a little feeling with the guys," Jokinen said yesterday, referring to linemates Marian Gaborik and Vinny Prospal. "Obviously they have chemistry because they've been playing on the same line all year. As a new guy coming in, I just have to try to fit in." Jokinen, a four-time 30-goal scorer, has netted only 13 this season, including two in 13 games for the Rangers since a trade with the ..."

Olli Jokinen's OT goal propels Rangers past Penguins, 3-2

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February 13

Bergen Record

"Finally, something went right for the Rangers at Mellon Arena. "Every person was paying the price and playing hard," said Olli Jokinen, who scored at 1:02 of overtime for a 3-2 win over the Penguins on Friday night, the Rangers' first overtime victory of the season. That included leading scorer Marian Gaborik, who sat out the final two periods after trying to play on his lacerated right thigh, and rookie defenseman Michael Del Zotto, who missed most of the game after suffering a deep gash on the left side of his rib cage. The Rangers (27-27-7), who earlier acquired enforcer Jody Shelley and are in a 3-8-0 slump, lost their previous seven regular-season games at the Igloo, which opened in ..."

Rangers, Devils land big fish

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February 7

Camden Courier-Post

columnist Chuck Gormley

"In the span of four days, New York Rangers general manager Glen Sather and New Jersey Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello took a drive through the NHL's high rent district and came away with Olli Jokinen and Ilya Kovalchuk. And while the two teams certainly stole headlines with the deals, was the risk worth the reward? Let's take a look: Trade: Rangers send forwards Ales Kotalik and Christopher Higgins to Calgary for Jokinen and Brandon Prust. Analysis: Sather erased two of his own mistakes in this deal. After signing a three-year, $9 million deal with the Rangers over the summer, Kotalik, 31, struggled under John Tortorella's aggressive offensive system, managing just eight goals in 45 ..."

Olli Jokinen not enough to help Rangers beat L.A.

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February 3

Bergen Record

"The addition of Olli Jokinen wasn't enough for the Rangers Tuesday night. Anze Kopitar scored a short-handed goal and Jonathan Quick made 20 saves in the Los Angeles Kings' seventh straight victory, 2-1 over the punchless Rangers. New York's only goal came late in the third by Marian Gaborik. Ryan Smyth scored with 8:46 to play for the Kings, who are on their longest winning streak since early 1992, when Wayne Gretzky's Kings won a franchise-record eight straight. Gaborik scored with 2:37 left to ruin Quick's shutout bid, but New York lost its sixth in seven games despite the arrivals of forwards Jokinen and Brandon Prust, acquired in a trade with Calgary less than 24 hours earlier. Henrik ..."

Abysmal offense foils Olli's debut

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February 3

New York Post

columnist Larry Brooks

"The faces change. The scoreboard doesn't. It was one game, the first with Olli Jokinen in the lineup, and thus the attempt to draw any far-reaching conclusions regarding the center's impact on the Rangers would be nonsensical. Still, the Blueshirts' inability to produce offense persisted here in last night's 2-1 loss to the Kings in which Henrik Lundqvist, back after missing two games with the flu, lost his fifth straight, yielding a two-on-one shorthanded goal to Anze Kopitar at 16:43 of the second when the Rangers had five forwards on the power play before being beaten from point-blank range by Ryan Smyth at 11:14 of the third. As usual, Marian Gaborik was the Rangers' offense, getting ..."

Jokinen looks for chemistry with Rangers

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February 3

New York Post

"While his new linemates Marian Gaborik and Vinny Prospal both suggested that it would naturally take time to develop chemistry with Olli Jokinen, the Rangers' new Finnish center implied that he didn't get much of it from the Flames. "Everyone says, 'Give it time, give it time,' but I got 75 games in Calgary, if that's a lot," Jokinen said before last night's 2-1 loss to the Kings. Jokinen was acquired last March by the Flames from Phoenix before being sent to the Rangers late Monday night with Brandon Prust for Chris Higgins and Ales Kotalik. "We don't have time to wait," he said. "There are six games until the Olympic break. We have to start getting used to each other tonight [last ..."

Olli Jokinen, New York Rangers' offense fails in 2-1 loss to Los Angeles Kings

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February 3

New York Daily News

"Olli Jokinen had been a Ranger for a few scant hours yesterday when he spoke about how little time he and Marian Gaborik have to adjust to one another. "It can't be long. There's six games before the Olympic break - we don't have time here to wait 20 games to get used to it," Jokinen said Tuesday. "We have to start getting used to each other tonight. That's the way it goes." Okay, Thursday night. With Jokinen playing his first game as a Ranger after being acquired from Calgary on Monday, it was a power-play miscue between the centerman and his wing that led to the go-ahead second-period goal in the Rangers' 2-1 loss to the Kings in their road-trip finale and sixth loss in the last seven. ..."

Craving Scorer, Rangers Acquire Flames' Olli Jokinen

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February 3

New York Times

"Center Olli Jokinen, who was having a subpar season in Calgary and has been traded three times in the past two years, became the latest piece of a Rangers makeover that does not seem to end. The Rangers shipped two recent pieces of that makeover, forwards Christopher Higgins and Ales Kotalik, to the Flames late Monday for the once high-scoring Jokinen and the bruising forward Brandon Prust. Jokinen, 31, has been shuttled from Florida to Phoenix to Calgary in the past two years. "It's a cruel business, but that's the way it goes," Jokinen told reporters in Calgary after the trade was completed following the Flames' game against Philadelphia on Monday. "It comes with the salary. You make ..."

Rangers complete trade with Flames for Olli Jokinen

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February 2

Bergen Record

"After some stops, starts and indecision, the Rangers and Flames finally agreed to a trade early Tuesday morning that brings likely top-line center Olli Jokinen to New York. The Flames will get forwards Christopher Higgins and Ales Kotalik, both in their first year with the Rangers, while the Rangers also acquire potential enforcer Brandon Prust. The deal was finalized after both Jokinen and Prust ended their Flames' careers in a 3-0 loss to the Flyers in Calgary. Jokinen took three shots and was a minus-1 in 15:08 while Prust played 7:27 without adding to his team-leading 98 penalty minutes. Christopher Higgins had accompanied the Rangers to Los Angeles, where the team will conclude its ..."

It's the Olli folly trade

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February 2

Calgary Herald

columnist George Johnson

"The day Olli Jokinen became a Calgary Flame, the adjectives were running thick and fast. Finally. That sizeable, strong, powerful beast down centre. A table-setter for Jarome Iginla. An untameable presence to make the middle of the ice his personal playpen. "It's a dream come true,'' stammered Jokinen, over a crackly conference-call line set up in the Ed Whalen Media Lounge on May 4, 2009. "I can't believe it. "It's a fresh start. Going to a place where there are high expectations and the people expect a 'W' every night, that's what you want. It's very exciting."

Rangers trade for Jokinen

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February 2

New York Post

"It's done. For better or worse, Olli Jokinen is a Ranger. In a trade that seemed to take longer to complete than the one that sent Wayne Gretzky from Edmonton to L.A. back in 1988, the Rangers late last night acquired Jokinen and Brandon Prust from Calgary in exchange for Ales Kotalik and Christopher Higgins. The deal, announced in the wee hours Eastern time, had had been held up for a couple of days while Kotalik played Hamlet, pondering whether to waive his three-team no-trade clause that included the Flames. Jokinen and Prust, who both played in the Flames' 3-0 loss to the Flyers in Calgary last night before the transaction was announced -- how bizarre is that? -- are expected to join ..."

New York Rangers get Calgary for center Olli Jokinen for Ales Kotalik

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February 2

New York Daily News

"The deal is done, for real this time. The trade was finalized roughly an hour after the Flames' 3-0 loss to the Flyers at the Saddledome, a game in which Jokinen played 15:08 amid swirling questions of whether his time in Calgary was through. The Finnish centerman (11-24-35) is expected to be at the Staples Center tonight to suit up for the Blueshirts, who complete their three-game Western swing against the Kings. The swap ultimately came to pass following two days of false starts and hand-wringing. The Rangers sent Kotalik home to New York on Sunday, telling him he would be traded, and Glen Sather thought he had a deal in the bag that night, only to have "complications" arise to put the ..."

Flames finally pull trigger on controversial Jokinen trade

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February 2

Calgary Herald

"Rumours had been swirling madly. Were the two players gone? Or were they staying? Is it all a bluff? Some weird ploy? Well, no. It turns out that the speculation was bang-on — the Flames traded forwards Olli Jokinen and Brandon Prust to the New York Rangers in exchange for forwards Ales Kotalik and Chris Higgins. Confirmation filtered out shortly after the Flames' 3-0 loss to the visiting Philadelphia Flyers on Monday night. Jokinen, minutes after learning his fate from general manager Darryl Sutter, put things in remarkably blunt terms. He did his talking at 11 p.m., near the zamboni entrance. "Eleven months ago when I got traded here I was super-excited . . . I was hoping that I could ..."

Jokinen bound for Big Apple, say reports

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February 1

Calgary Herald

"Olli Jokinen is reported to be Broadway bound. After negotiating a seven-player swap, speculation is rampant that Calgary Flames GM Darryl Sutter hasn't finished re-tooling his struggling hockey team. TSN.ca is reporting that the underachieving Jokinen will be officially dealt to the New York Rangers today along with Brandon Prust in exchange for wingers Ales Kotalik and Christopher Higgins. Between them, the players rumoured to be heading here have compiled 36 points in 103 games and are a combined minus-27. Kotalik signed a three-year deal with the Rangers last off-season and is owed $3 million over each of the last two years of the deal. A sizable hit for a habitually erratic return. ..."

Deal for Jokinen in holding pattern

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February 1

TSN.ca

"The New York Rangers and Calgary Flames were expected to announce a trade that would send centre Olli Jokinen and forward Brandon Prust to the Rangers in exchange for forwards Ales Kotalik and Christopher Higgins, but the deal appears to be stalled. Sources told TSN Sunday night that New York was awaiting Calgary's final sign-off before the trade call was to be made. Jokinen was originally acquired by Calgary from the Phoenix Coyotes at last year's trade deadline. The 31-year old veteran has 11 goals and 24 assists in 55 games with the Flames this season."

Jokinen bound for Big Apple, say reports

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February 1

Calgary Herald

"Olli Jokinen is reported to be Broadway bound. After negotiating a seven-player swap, speculation is rampant that Calgary Flames GM Darryl Sutter hasn't finished re-tooling his struggling hockey team. TSN.ca is reporting that the underachieving Jokinen will be officially dealt to the New York Rangers today along with Brandon Prust in exchange for wingers Ales Kotalik and Christopher Higgins. Between them, the players rumoured to be heading here have compiled 36 points in 103 games and are a combined minus-27. Kotalik signed a three-year deal with the Rangers last off-season and is owed $3 million over each of the last two years of the deal. A sizable hit for a habitually erratic return. ..."

Gaborik's hat trick leads Rangers; Kotalik trade near

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February 1

New York Post

"The Rangers won for the first time in nearly two weeks, but Glen Sather may have lost again. While Sather appears on the verge of erasing the summer mistake he made in signing Ales Kotalik to a three-year, $9 million free agent contract, one wonders if the Rangers general manager simply will be compounding the error by completing a deal to send the winger to Calgary in exchange for underachieving center Olli Jokinen. According to a variety of sources, the Rangers had a trade in place to send Kotalik and a defenseman, believed to be Matt Gilroy, to Calgary in order to rent the 31-year-old Jokinen, who will be a free agent once his contract ($5.25M cap hit) expires at the conclusion of the ..."

Rangers discussing trade scenarios with Flames

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February 1

Bergen Record

"The Rangers feverishly worked on a deal Sunday to trade underused right wing Ales Kotalik and his three-year, $9 million salary. Multiple outlets reported late in the day a deal had been struck with the Flames that would send Kotalik and left wing Christopher Higgins to the Flames for center Olli Jokinen and forward Brandon Prust. However, the Rangers announced only that a potential deal had hit some "complications" and general manager Glen Sather did not address the media. Jokinen has 11 goals and 24 assists in 55 games with the Flames this season after being acquired from the Coyotes at last season's trade deadline. Jokinen is in the last year of his contract, which carries a salary-cap ..."

Jokinen dealt to Rangers?

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February 1

Calgary Sun

"Hours after completing a blockbuster seven-player swap with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Flames GM Darryl Sutter was back in the rumour mill — and allegedly back in the office swinging a second deal. According to a TSN report late Sunday night, the Flames and New York Rangers were getting ready to announce a four-player swap that would take forwards Olli Jokinen and Brandon Prust to Manhattan in exchange for Ales Kotalik and Chris Higgins. One of the Flames players involved said he hadn't heard anything other than the TSN broadcast. A team spokesman said he hadn't heard anything official, either. Another source suggested it hasn't officially gone through but could be completed as early as this ..."

GM says Flames want to keep Bourque, Jokinen

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January 15

Calgary Herald

"The Calgary Flames hope to be able to sign pending unrestricted free agents Olli Jokinen and Rene Bourque. General manager Darryl Sutter made the admission during Thursday night's inaugural FAN 960 Fan Forum at Flames Central. "We'll do everything we can to make sure Olli is not an unrestricted free agent," said Sutter in response to a question from the invitation-only crowd about the Finnish centre and his future with the team. A short time later during the two-hour-long town hall style gathering, which included club president Ken King, Sutter said right-winger Bourque was "a big part of our team and we'll do everything in our power to keep him." Bourque, of course, is probably up for a ..."

Jokinen remains humble

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December 7

Calgary Sun

"During Olli Jokinen's early-season scoring slump, he and head coach Brent Sutter insisted goals and assists were secondary to the top-line centre evolving his game. The quest was for Jokinen to become the well-rounded player the team needed. Now, it would appear the package is coming together. Heading into tonight's clash with the Los Angeles Kings, Jokinen is on his best stretch of the season. In the five games so far on this trip, he's collected three goals and three assists, and he's been a point-per-game player over the last 14 games. Don't expect him to gloat after facing so much criticism to start the season. "All I care about is how many points we have in the standings," Jokinen ..."

Olli trade a joke?

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November 21

Calgary Sun

columnist Steve MacFarlane

"The only thing taking a beating worse than the one Olli Jokinen received at the hands of Francois Beauchemin in Toronto last week is Jokinen's popularity in Calgary. Scoring his third goal of the season and first in eight games Thursday in a 7-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks at the Saddledome won't do much for his image. Unlike the black eye and bruising still showing on his battered face as a result of Beauchemin's beat-down, there are no marks from the whipping Jokinen has taken from the unhappy masses demanding more from the US$5.5-million middle man. But his production has been so poor, some are actually starting to suggest last year's trade for the Finn is proving to be just as bad ..."

Flames shuffle lines in bid to spark Iginla, Jokinen

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November 4

Calgary Herald

"The shakeup continues. A day after whipping his troops through a punishing practice, Calgary Flames head coach Brent Sutter shuffled the lines for Tuesday's pre-departure workout at the Pengrowth Saddledome. Most notably, struggling snipers Jarome Iginla and Olli Jokinen were reunited to form a line with winger Eric Nystrom. "I felt we wanted to change up a little bit and we did after the second period the other night," said Sutter, referring to Saturday's 3-1 loss to the Detroit Red Wings. "We'll see. It could change again (today), but at this point in time, I'd like to give it some thought, but today we put them back together and we'll see where we're at." "Both their play needs to be ..."

Iginla, Jokinen reunited

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November 4

Calgary Sun

"Calgary's most controversial celebrity couple is back together again. Snake-bitten snipers Jarome Iginla and Olli Jokinen hit the ice yesterday in matching red practice uniforms, hinting they'll be skating side-by-side tonight when the Flames face off against Stars in Dallas (6:30 p.m, TSN). Written off by many fans as a failed chemistry experiment, the Flames' highest-paid forwards will get another shot to prove the naysayers wrong after being split up five games ago. "Whenever you're not winning, things change up a bit, and we were obviously prepared for that," Iginla said. "I look forward to it. I always enjoy playing with (Jokinen). "He's a big, strong, smart hockey player, and I think ..."

Sutter system challenges Jokinen

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October 30

Calgary Herald

"Plenty is new for Olli Jokinen. His first full season with the Calgary Flames. His first year under coach Brent Sutter. Summing up the transition best may be the change in article — from The Man to a man. After being the leader of the pack for seven winters with the Florida Panthers — and last season's pit stop with the Phoenix Coyotes — Jokinen is now one of the gang. And, yes, that is an adjustment for the big centre. "It's not Olli's fault that he's been (allowed) to do certain things because he's come from certain programs," said Sutter. "It is different because you're having to work within a team concept now . . . and it's not everyone working for you. You've got to go and find that ..."

Flames have faith in Jokinen

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October 30

Toronto Sun

"On the surface, it's easy to say the Olli Jokinen experiment is a flop. In the 11th game of the campaign, last season's major trade-deadline acquisition finally scored his second goal. He has only six points. That's hardly the production expected when Jokinen came from the Phoenix Coyotes. However, head coach Brent Sutter showed he believes talented players can build their way up in his system -- look at the way defence partners Robyn Regehr and Dion Phaneuf worked their way out of early season struggles -- and is adamant Jokinen will hit his high gear."

Jokinen eager for fresh start

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September 4

Calgary Sun

"Olli Jokinen couldn't escape the foul memory of his first playoff experience. His Calgary Flames were unceremoniously bounced by the Chicago Blackhawks in the opening round last spring, and it bothered him early this summer. But he didn't brood too long. "You can't feel sorry all summer," Jokinen said. "It's no point. But it's definitely in the back of your mind, back of your head. "We started sliding at the end of the regular season and never bounced back. We have to be ready from the start of training camp and go from there." Most Flames players gathered yesterday for the team's annual charity golf tournament, with training camp just around the corner. Rookies report for physicals ..."