Dallas Stars Roster Updates: Kari Lehtonen Activated from IR, Campbell Reassigned
The Dallas Stars announced on Wednesday that goaltender Kari Lehtonen has been activated from IR, barely two weeks after sustaining an upper-body injury in their match against the Ottawa Senators last Nov. 24. The news of his activation is a welcoming one for the Stars that need him for a late season push.
After the Finnish hockey star went down with the injury caused by an accidental collision with teammate John Klingberg, the team recalled Jack Campbell from the Texas Stars, but he actually didn't play a single game for the team since Antti Niemi came in as a reliable substitute, going 2-0-1 in the three games he played.
Incidentally, it was Lehtonen who actually filled in for Niemi in the second period of their match against the Senators, which the team lost 7-4.
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Niemi started majority of the games for Dallas after joining the team during the offseason, replacing Lehtonen who previously started for the Stars in the past five years. By comparison, Lehtonen owns a slightly better "goals against" average compared to Niemi and is currently 9-1 in 10 starts so far.
The 32-year-old Lehtonen was the second overall pick of the Atlanta Thrashers in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft. At that point, he became the highest drafted goalie from Europe and also the highest Finnish player to be drafted in league history.
The American Campbell, on the other hand, is a young goaltender who is still trying to carve his own niche in the NHL, though he's had significant experience and playing time for the Texas Stars in the AHL. The 23-year-old so far has played just one game in the NHL, making his debut on Oct. 20, 2013 against the Anaheim Ducks. Dallas lost that game though, 6-3. He will be returning to his AHL team, Texas Stars after Lehtonen's activation.
Dallas currently sits atop the West with a record of 19-5-1.
