09/10 Salary: $7 million
[ Hockey Reference Player Page ]
Diving back into our Grading the Flyers series, today we take a look at Kimmo Timonen. And really, what negative things can we say about Kimmo? He’s a workhorse. One of the most underrated players on the Flyers and probably in the entire NHL. Without him, the Flyers defense goes from top 5 in the league to just plain mediocre.
I’d argue that Timonen meant more to the 2010 Flyers than just about any other player on the roster.
I’m not going to try to make the argument that Kimmo is more important to the Flyers than Chris Pronger or any of the other Flyers defenseman, because obviously, with a defensive unit, every player has their role and every player is important.
I think the reason I respect Timonen so much is that he performs his role quietly, almost behind the scenes. He goes completely unnoticed, while guys like Pronger are similarly dominant while also being the center of attention. Timonen doesn’t hold the spotlight, and as a solid defensive defenseman, that’s a compliment. You aren’t supposed to notice him and you don’t.
He just puts in 20-plus minutes consistently every night. He doesn’t do anything else. He just plays hockey very, very well. There’s not much to say about Timonen other than that. He gets an A.
How would you grade Kimmo Timonen’s 2009-2010 season?
| A | 419 |
| B | 98 |
| C | 5 |
| D | 0 |
| F | 6 |
