About Kari Lehtonen
Kari Lehtonen (born November 16, 1983) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey goaltender who played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Atlanta Thrashers and Dallas Stars. He was selected second overall in the 2002 NHL entry draft by the Thrashers, becoming the highest-drafted European goaltender, as well as being tied with Patrik Laine, Alexander Barkov and Kaapo Kakko for the highest-drafted Finnish player in NHL history. == Early life == Lehtonen was born on November 16, 1983, in Helsinki, Finland. He is the son to parents Martti and Marja Lehtonen. He also has a sister, Kirsi, and an older brother, Kimmo. His father owns a tire dealership and his mother is a nurse. Lehtonen began picking up an interest in hockey at the age of five, following his brother to his team practices, before he started playing goalie at seven years old, with the help of his personal goalie coach helping him learn the position. == Playing career == === Early years === Lehtonen was drafted second overall in the 2002 NHL entry draft by the Atlanta Thrashers after an outstanding 2001–02 season in the Finnish SM-liiga and became the highest-drafted European goaltender. Lehtonen was the backup goalie for Jokerit, but captured the starting position and won the Urpo Ylönen trophy, given to the best goalie of the season, and the league's playoff MVP award, the Jari Kurri trophy. Lehtonen stayed with Jokerit for one more season before moving to North America.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.