Feb. 17
The Anaheim Ducks
announced Thursday that the National Hockey League (NHL) club has acquired left
wing Jarkko Ruutu from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for a sixth-round
selection in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.
Jarkko is an
effective, two-way player that we feel will help us down the stretch, said
Executive Vice President/General Manager Bob Murray. He's the
energetic, gritty type of addition we were looking for."
Ruutu, 35
(8/23/75), has appeared in 629 career NHL contests, earning 57-83-140 points
with 1,040 penalty minutes (PIM) with Vancouver, Pittsburgh and Ottawa. He
appeared in 50 contests with the Senators this season, scoring 2-8=10 points
with 59 PIM. In 2009-10, he established career highs with Ottawa for both goals
(12) and points in a season (26). He also matched his career high in assists
(14) in 2009-10 and was one of only two Senators to appear in all 82 contests
(second time in career, also 2005-06). He appeared in his 500th career NHL
contest on Oct. 12, 2009 vs. Pittsburgh.
A native of Vantaa, Finland,
Ruutu joined Teemu Selanne and Saku Koivu on the medal podium at both the 2006
Olympic Winter Games in Turin, Italy (silver medal) and the 2010 Olympic Winter
Games in Vancouver, British Columbia (bronze medal) as a member of Team
Finland. A three-time Olympian, he also played for his native country at the
2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, UT. In addition, Ruutu is a veteran
of six Finnish World Championship squads (silver in 2001, bronze in 2006) and
appeared in the 2004 World Cup (with Selanne and Koivu).
Selected by Vancouver in the
third round (68th overall) of the 1998 NHL Entry Draft,
Ruutu made his NHL debut on Nov. 20, 1999 at Nashville and scored his first NHL
goal (shorthanded) on Jan. 24, 2001 vs. Phoenix. After playing six seasons with
Vancouver, he signed as a free agent with Pittsburgh on July 4, 2006 and later
with Ottawa on July 2, 2008. The 6-1, 204-pound winger is also a veteran of 55
career Stanley Cup Playoff contests, earning 5-5=10 points with 102 PIM. He
advanced to the Stanley Cup Final with Pittsburgh in 2008, notching 2-1=3
points with 26 PIM in 20 games. Ruutu scored the game-winning goal in Game 4 of
the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals at Ottawa on April 16, 2008, helping the
Penguins to a sweep of the Senators.
