Projo Bruins Blog

By MARK DIVVER
Assistant Sports Editor

PROVIDENCE -- There are plenty of big guys with no hands in the American Hockey League.

And there are lots of small players with great hands.

Big or small, some have NHL skating ability and others don't.

But big guys, with great hands, who can skate?

Not so many.

Which brings us to Mikko Lehtonen, who was recalled from Providence by the Boston Bruins on Friday.

Coming into this season, Lehtonen's first in North America, the 6'4'' 203-pound Finnish right winger was more suspect than prospect.

The 22-year-old right winger -- a third-round draft pick in 2005 -- was thought to be a soft, perimeter player whose willingness to pay the price to be a scorer was in question.

Twenty-eight goals later, Lehtonen has established himself as an NHL prospect.

"From the beginning of the season to now, he is our most improved player,'' says coach Rob Murray. "He's got NHL skill. He's got great hands. He skates well enough and he's a big man. He's a guy that has become a nice prospect for the Bruins.

Lehtonen, who had a goal and an assist and was picked as the first star in Wednesday's 5-2 win in Lowell, led AHL rookies in goals and was fifth in rookie scoring with 28-25-53 in 73 games before Friday night's games. Lehtonen had 10 power-play goals and was 5 for 15 in the shootout with 2 game-winners.

So far, so good, Lehtonen said Thursday after practice at the Dunkin Donuts Center.
Lehtonen quickly adjusted from the Olympic-size rinks of Finland to the smaller North American ice surfaces.

"It's a different game style than Europe and Finland, but I got used to it after a couple of games. I've been pretty happy. The coaches have helped me improve my game, so it's been a great year.''

Lehtonen said the Finnish elite league, where he played for his hometown Espoo Blues, compares favorably to the AHL. "I think the skill level is equal. It's just that it's faster (in the AHL) because the ice surface is smaller,'' he said.

"I've tried to be a hard-working goal scorer, help the team by scoring goals. And also working both ways.''

Murray's more than satisfied with Lehtonen's progress.

"There always had been a question whether he had the courage to go into the dirty areas of the ice, which I haven't had any problems with this year,'' Murray said. "He drives the net pretty hard.

"He's always had the skill, but his adjustment to the North American game, in that he has improved immensely. He's got himself into a situation where -- before there were probably questions about whether he could play -- now I believe he's a genuine prospect.

"Now he's a guy for the Bruins to consider. He might, maybe, someday, play in the NHL for them. That was up in the air at the beginning of the season. Now he's improved enough. Does he get a shot next year? He's a guy that's going to develop and get better and better.

"He's big, he skates well. And he's got hands that many big players don't have. There's not many guys that size that bring the skill level that Mikko has. Size, speed and hands. It's a package that's rarely found.''

To take the next step, Lehtonen needs to improve his strength and conditioning. Lehtonen is playing many more minutes with Providence than he did with Espoo, Murray said.

"He's admitted to me that he's probably not in the condition he needs to be to play the minutes he has right now. His overall conditioning and his ability to keep up the pace of the game thoughout the whole game is one of the things he needs to work on. He needs to get stronger, upper body and all-around.''

 Tags  Boston Bruins Mikko Lehtonen Providence Bruins Rob Murray

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