Lasse Kukkonen

Lasse Kukkonen (born on September 18, 1981) is a Finnish professional ice hockey defenceman who currently plays for Rögle BK of the Swedish Elite League (SEL).

Lasse previously played four seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Chicago Blackhawks and Philadelphia Flyers.

Playing Career
Lasse was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks as their fifth-round pick, 151st overall, in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. He played ten NHL games in the 2003–04 NHL season after which he returned to his hometown Kärpät in the SM-liiga. Kukkonen won the SM-liiga gold medal with Kärpät in 2005.

In the 2006-07 season, Lasse returned to the Chicago Blackhawks and played in 54 games before he was dealt to the Philadelphia Flyers along with a 3rd round draft pick in a three-way deal with the Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings on February 26, 2007.

With the Flyers, Lasse was put on a defensive pairing with Joni Pitkanen (who is also a native of Oulu). The two were also a pairing for 4 years in Finland.

On May 17, 2007, Lasse signed a two-year contract with the Flyers. On June 24, 2009, he signed a two-year deal with Russian team, Avangard Omsk of the KHL.

Awards & Achievements

 * 2005–06: Pekka Rautakallio trophy

International Play
Lasse was named to the Finnish Olympic team at the 2006 Winter Olympics after defenceman Sami Salo was injured and played in both the semifinal match versus Russia and the gold medal match versus Sweden.