Product Code Database
Ville Hans Viking Leino (born 6 October 1983) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey forward. He has played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Detroit Red Wings, Philadelphia Flyers and Buffalo Sabres.
In 2007, Leino was signed by Jokerit, where he was switched from centre to wing. In his first season with the team, he broke the club record for most points in the regular season when he surpassed Timo Sutinen's record of 73. He went on to finish second in scoring, and won the Lasse Oksanen trophy for the best player during the regular season in the SM-liiga.
In the first period of his NHL debut on 31 January 2009, Leino scored a goal against goaltender José Théodore in a 4–2 loss to the Washington Capitals.
Leino signed a one-way, two-year extension with the Red Wings on 6 July 2009.
On 6 February 2010, Leino was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for Norwegian defenceman Ole-Kristian Tollefsen and a fifth-round draft pick in 2011. Leino had two goals and two assists in 14 games with the Flyers during the regular season. He then began the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs out of the lineup as a healthy scratch, but injuries to Simon Gagné and Jeff Carter forced Leino into action. Forming the most offensively-productive line in the playoffs alongside Daniel Brière and Scott Hartnell, Leino scored seven goals and 14 assists for 21 points in 19 games, tying the rookie record for most points in the Stanley Cup playoffs held by Dino Ciccarelli.
On 12 March 2011, during the 2010–11 regular season, Leino recorded his first career hat-trick against the Atlanta Thrashers. On 24 April, during the first round of the 2011 playoffs against the Buffalo Sabres, Leino scored the game-winning goal in overtime of Game 6 of the series to bring Philadelphia even with Buffalo, three games apiece. He finished the playoffs with three goals and two assists as the Flyers were ultimately swept in the Eastern Conference Semifinals by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins.
Leino became an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2011 season, whereupon he signed a six-year, $27 million contract with Buffalo on 1 July 2011. His performance during the 2011–12 season, however, was much maligned, as he scored just eight goals with 17 assists during 71 games, failing to live up to the expectations of his recently signed contract. Continuing sub-par play in the 2012–13 and 2013–14 seasons (he failed to score a single goal in the latter) prompted incoming Head Coach Ted Nolan to bench Leino near the end of the 2013–14 season, leading to speculation that the Sabres would buy out his contract at the end of the season. On 17 June, in the off-season, the Sabres indeed placed Leino on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a compliance buyout. Leino would later reflect upon his final season in Buffalo as a very unpleasant experience, akin to spending time in jail because of the high pressure on him to live up to his contract.
On 24 July 2015, Leino made a return to the KHL in signing a one-year contract with club, Dinamo Riga of the KHL.
On 3 October 2017, Leino announced his retirement.
| 2000–01 | SaPKo | FIN.2 U20 | 19 | 14 | 12 | 26 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2000–01 | SaPKo | Suomi-sarja | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2001–02 | SaPKo | FIN.2 U20 | 26 | 36 | 36 | 72 | 14 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 2 |
| 2001–02 | SaPKo | FIN.4 | 15 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2002–03 | Ilves | FIN U20 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2002–03 | Ilves | Liiga | 23 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2003–04 | Ilves | FIN U20 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2003–04 | Ilves | SM-l | 54 | 9 | 15 | 24 | 26 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 2004–05 | Ilves | SM-l | 56 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 32 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 2005–06 | HPK | SM-l | 56 | 12 | 31 | 43 | 65 | 13 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 4 |
| 2006–07 | HPK | SM-l | 50 | 11 | 29 | 40 | 73 | 8 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 31 |
| 2007–08 | Jokerit | SM-l | 55 | 28 | 49 | 77 | 18 | 14 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 8 |
| 2008–09 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 13 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| 2008–09 | Grand Rapids Griffins | AHL | 57 | 15 | 31 | 46 | 18 | 10 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 10 |
| 2009–10 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 42 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2009–10 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 13 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 19 | 7 | 14 | 21 | 6 |
| 2010–11 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 81 | 19 | 34 | 53 | 22 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| 2011–12 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 71 | 8 | 17 | 25 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2012–13 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 8 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2013–14 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 58 | 0 | 15 | 15 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2014–15 | KHL Medveščak Zagreb | KHL | 28 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2014–15 | Kloten Flyers | NLA | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015–16 | Dinamo Riga | KHL | 39 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015–16 | Växjö Lakers | SHL | 17 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 2 | 13 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 8 |
| 2016–17 | Växjö Lakers | SHL | 44 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Liiga | ||
| All-Star Team | 2006, 2008 | |
| Lasse Oksanen trophy | 2008 | |
|
|
