Leonid Komarov: the most famous Russian Finn in hockey

Little Finland is one of the main suppliers of hockey stars around the world. The immigrants from Suomi play in the best clubs in North America and in the KHL. One of them is ice hockey player Leonid Komarov. Where the talented extreme forward is now playing, it's not a secret for fans of the NHL. Since 2014, he conscientiously works his bread in the "Toronto Maple Lives", where he managed to gain a foothold in the first link and his game deserved the right to call for a match of all NHL stars.

A native of Estonia

Unusual for the Finnish name and surname of the player suggest the idea of the Russian origin of Leonid Komarov. In fact, he was born in Estonian Narva in 1987. His father Alexander Komarov was also a professional hockey player, at one time he moved to Finland, in a small town Nyukarleby. Here he played for modest clubs of the lower leagues, and thanks to his Karelian background he was allowed to stay in the country for permanent residence.

Hockey box - an integral part of any settlement in Finland. The town with a population of seven thousand people, where Leonid Komarov lived, also boasted its own platform. Here, under the strict guidance of his father and honed his skills future formidable striker NHL and the KHL. By the way, later on the site of the open area will erect a real ice palace, which will be named in honor of his famous countryman. And a person unfamiliar with hockey and his stars, will be surprised that the ice palace in Suomi is called "Leonid Komarov".

Starting a career

At first, a native from Narva played for junior Finnish clubs. In 2005 he joined the friendly ranks of the club of the country's top league Essy. In its composition, he became the silver medalist of the country. At the start of his adult career Leonid Komarov, hockey player aggressive and assertive, did not impress with his performance. In not the strongest league in Europe, he scored no more than five goals in a season, did not give very many assists.

Nevertheless, scouting scouts from North America saw something in a relatively small, tightly knocked down Finnish boy. Already in 2006 he was selected in the draft by the NHL Toronto Maple Lives club under the serial number 180.

In 2006, Leonid Komarov, a hockey player with a big future, moved to another Finnish club, Pelikans, where he played until 2009. Here, too, he did not hit with his performance, finishing his career in the Finnish league with a mark of 56 points in two hundred matches.

The owner of the Gagarin Cup

In 2009, hockey player Leonid Komarov made the transition to the KHL. Moscow "Dynamo" offered a Finnish striker a profitable contract, and he, without hesitation, moved to Russia.

He knows Russian well, he easily adapted in Moscow, and a natural sense of humor and sociability made him one of the favorites of "Dynamo". The first season he mastered in Russian hockey, did not shine with efficiency. Only in the second year Leonid Komarov played and managed to score 26 scoring points. At the same time, he finished the season with an excellent indicator of the usefulness of the minutes spent on the site, which was +11.

Hockey player Leonid Komarov is gradually becoming one of the main stars of the KHL, an indispensable player in the attacking game of the team. Together with her, he managed to win the Gagarin Cup in 2012.

Throwing from Moscow to Toronto and back

In 2006, the NHL "Toronto Maple Lives" already chose Leonid Komarov in the draft and patiently waited for the Finnish striker. Six years later, in 2012, he decided to fulfill his dream and play in the strongest hockey league of the planet.

However, due to the lockout in the NHL, he continued to play for the first half of the season for Moscow's Dynamo. Many of the temporarily unemployed North American stars came to Russian clubs that season to avoid losing their earnings and playing practice. Among them were players such as Niklas Backstrom and Alexander Ovechkin. Both of them began to compete for the Moscow "Dynamo". So, Leonid Komarov for a short time was a member of the strongest attacking link on the planet.

After the lockout the Finnish forward went to fulfill his childhood desire to play in the NHL. However, he was not immediately entrusted with the place in the main team of Toronto. A dozen matches he played in a farm club playing in the American Hockey League.

Having shown great success in the AHL, Leonid Komarov joined Toronto Maple Lives. However, the remaining matches of the season, he adapted to the new realities, high speeds and power style of the NHL, so not immediately entrenched in the main links of the team.

Unable to agree with the club's management of the terms of his contract, the pragmatic Russian Finn decided to accept the advantageous offer of the Moscow "Dynamo" and returned to Russia, where he spent the 2013/2014 season.

Return to Canada

The second coming of Leonid Komarov in "Dynamo" was marked by qualitative changes in the forward game. Previously, he played extremely monotonously, betting solely on his power and on duty on the opponent's goalkeeper's patch. In the 2013/2014 season, the fans appreciated the progress of the Finn, who began to act more ingeniously, distributed many programs to his partners, and worked selflessly in defense.

This impressed the managers of the Toronto Maple Lives, and they returned Komarov back, agreeing to more favorable terms for the contract. Since then, he firmly secured a place in the first link of the team and became one of its leaders.

His game native of Narva even deserved an invitation to a match of all the NHL stars, which left him a lot of unforgettable impressions.

The wife of hockey player Leonid Komarov is a well-known tennis player Yulia Manner, with whom he signed in 2016.