Former draft bust officially makes his return to the NHL
The Calgary Flames announced today that they have hired former Los Angeles Kings forward Lauri Tukonen as an amateur scout to cover Finland.
The team made this announcement on their social media platforms, including X (formerly Twitter). They also announced the hiring of Mike Coflin as an amateur scout covering the Western Hockey League.
Lauri Tukonen is notable as one of the more prominent NHL draft busts from Finland. Drafted 11th overall by the Kings in 2004, there was much hype around him at the time. Unfortunately, things never worked out for him in North America.
- Riku Helenius #15, 2006
- Lauri Tukonen #11, 2004
- Petteri Nokelainen #16, 2004
- Jesse Niinimäki, #15 2002
- Jani Rita, #13 1999
- Ari Ahonen, #29 1999
- Mika Noronen, #21 1997
- Teemu Riihijärvi, #12 1995
- Miika Elomo, #23 1995
The Finnish forward played just 5 NHL games with the Kings and never recorded a point. After three years in North America, mainly with the Manchester Monarchs of the AHL, Tukonen returned to Finland, where he had a solid but unspectacular career. His last season was in 2019-20, playing 5 games for TPS.
While Tukonen never made it in the NHL, he now has a second chance for success in the league as a scout. Expect the Flames to draft more Finnish players in the coming years as they look to retool for the future.
Source: EliteProspectsLauri Tukonen Career Statistics
| POLL | ||
1 AOUT | 46 ANSWERS Former draft bust officially makes his return to the NHL Do you remember when Lauri Tukonen was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings? | ||
| Yes | 5 | 10.9 % |
| No | 41 | 89.1 % |
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