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Player of the Month

The European Hockey.Net European Player of the Month is awarded to the player with the most oustanding performance over the course of the month

Nominations are collected at the end of each month, then a vote by the site's admin team decides the winner.

October 2006 - Kimmo Rintanen

The October Player of the Month award has been won by Finnish forward Kimmo Rintanen.

Rintanen, 33 years old, is currently in his sixth season with Swiss NationalLiga A side Kloten Flyers and has made an impact right from his arrival. Last month Rintanen underlined his good form by scoring no less than 11 goals along with 15 assists in just 12 games to lead his team in scoring.

The two-time SM-Liiga Golden Helmet winner is reknowned for his technique and has appeared in various instruction videos which are sold globally. Other than that Rintanen has won the Gentlemen Player award no less than four times in Finland and has represented his national team for over a decade.

After two of his most productive seasons in Finland, the Finnish forward went for a change of scenery and moved to Switzerland in 2001. His performance with Kloten has been consistent since. He averages 50 points per season and is the dynamo on which the team is running.

Expect an exclusive interview with this winner to follow in the next few days.

The European Hockey.Net October Player of the Month competition was dominated by Scandinavians as they took the complete top 3.

Runner-up was young and talented Swede Niklas Bäckström. Despite still junior eligible, the forward is making a huge impression at the elite level with Brynäs and led the league in scori

In third place was Finn Makku Vuorisalo who is currently playing in Norway with Furuset. So far this season, the offensive player has scored nearly half of his team's goals along with countryman Teemu Kuusisto. He averages two points per games over the first 11 games of the season.

Related links

Kimmo Rintanen's profile

Niklas Bäckström's profile

Makku Vuorisalo's profile