Marko Anttila

Marko Anttila (born May 27, 1985) is a Finnish professional ice hockey forward. He currently plays for Jokerit of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Anttila was selected by Chicago Blackhawks in the 9th round (260th overall) of the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. His large physical stature has earned him the nickname the Groke.[1]

For the film director, see Marko Antila.

Marko Anttila
Born (1985-05-27) May 27, 1985
Lempäälä, Finland
Height 6 ft 8 in (203 cm)
Weight 229 lb (104 kg; 16 st 5 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shoots Right
KHL team
Former teams		 Jokerit
Ilves Tampere
HC TPS
Metallurg Novokuznetsk
Örebro HK
National team  Finland
NHL Draft 260th overall, 2004
Chicago Blackhawks
Playing career 2003–present

Playing career

Marko Anttila played his first senior level ice hockey games during the 2003–04 season. Anttila's first team was his hometown team Lempäälän Kisa of Lempäälä.

Marko Anttila

Anttila scored 38 points in 22 Suomi-sarja regular season games during his debut season. Though playing in the 3rd highest level in Finland, Anttila was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft while he was playing for LeKi. It is believed that Anttila's connections with Chicago's scout for Finland, Sakari Pietilä, was the reason why he was drafted. His large size (over 6'8 ft tall) combined to his hard slap shot were the most convincing factors that influenced Sakari Pietilä suggested him to the Blackhawks.

After being drafted while playing for small town's team, Anttila soon was reckoned as a player to invest on. Marko Anttila was contracted by Ilves in 2004. Anttila struggled during his first season in SM-liiga but soon got the hand of playing in bigger levels.

In 2007–08, Anttila scored his SM-liiga career-high when he racked 23 points in 56 games and he was selected to play for Finnish National team during the European Hockey Tour.

On 26 April 2011, Anttila made a one-year contract with TPS. In June 2013 it was announced that Anttila would join Metallurg Novokuznetsk of the KHL.

After parts of three seasons with Örebro HK of the Swedish Hockey League, Anttila returned to the KHL, linking up on a one-year deal with Finnish-based club, Jokerit on April 20, 2016.[2]

In the midst of the 2016–17 season, having added a physical presence to the checking lines, Anttila agreed to a two-year contract extension to remain with Jokerit on January 8, 2017.[3]

International play
Medal record
Ice hockey
Representing  Finland
World Championships
2019 Slovakia

In 2019, Anttila served as captain when Finland won their third gold medal in the Ice Hockey World Championships. In the semi-final game against Russia, he scored the only goal. In the final against Canada he scored two goals including the game-winning goal leading Finland to a 3–1 victory.[4]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2002–03 LeKi FIN.2 U18 11 17 8 25 41 — — — — —
2003–04 LeKi FIN.3 U20 12 11 11 22 26 — — — — —
2003–04 LeKi FIN.4 22 19 19 38 30 — — — — —
2004–05 Ilves FIN U20 27 14 6 20 44 9 5 7 12 14
2004–05 Ilves SM-l 28 2 1 3 10 3 0 0 0 0
2005–06 Ilves FIN U20 10 4 2 6 6 2 1 1 2 4
2005–06 Ilves SM-l 50 4 3 7 46 4 0 0 0 0
2006–07 Ilves SM-l 53 2 2 4 34 7 1 0 1 8
2007–08 Ilves SM-l 56 14 9 23 90 9 2 2 4 4
2008–09 Ilves SM-l 58 8 14 22 69 3 0 0 0 2
2009–10 Ilves SM-l 57 8 18 26 52 — — — — —
2010–11 Ilves SM-l 33 5 8 13 26 6 2 1 3 4
2011–12 TPS SM-l 59 14 22 36 36 2 0 1 1 4
2012–13 TPS SM-l 60 17 24 41 68 — — — — —
2013–14 Metallurg Novokuznetsk KHL 16 2 4 6 10 — — — — —
2013–14 Ariada Volzhsk VHL 6 2 3 5 6 — — — — —
2013–14 Örebro HK SHL 22 13 7 20 30 — — — — —
2014–15 Örebro HK SHL 52 14 6 20 16 6 0 1 1 8
2015–16 Örebro HK SHL 49 8 6 14 28 2 1 1 2 35
2016–17 Jokerit KHL 56 7 9 16 41 4 0 1 1 2
2017–18 Jokerit KHL 52 8 8 16 26 10 1 1 2 10
2018–19 Jokerit KHL 38 11 4 15 21 6 1 2 3 2
2019–20 Jokerit KHL 61 11 7 18 14 6 2 2 4 4
Liiga totals 454 74 101 175 431 39 5 6 11 24
KHL totals 223 39 32 71 112 26 4 6 10 18

International
Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2013 Finland WC 4th 7 0 1 1 2
2018 Finland OG 6th 3 0 1 1 2
2018 Finland WC 5th 8 2 2 4 2
2019 Finland WC 10 4 0 4 4
Senior totals 28 6 4 10 10

References
  1. https://www.iihf.com/en/events/2019/wm/news/13125/nothing-like-the-third-time
  2. "Anttila and Marjamaki added to attack". jokerit.com (in Finnish). Jokerit. 20 April 2016. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  3. "Jokerit extend Anttila for two years". jokerit.com (in Finnish). Jokerit. 8 January 2017. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
  4. "Finland defeats Canada for Gold Medal at World Championship". tsn.ca. The Sports Network. 26 May 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2019.


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