Jonas Hiller facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jonas Hiller
Hiller in 2017
Born	(1982-02-12) 12 February 1982 (age 43) Felben-Wellhausen, Switzerland
Height	6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight	192 lb (87 kg; 13 st 10 lb)
Position	Goaltender
Caught	Right
Played for	HC Davos HC Lausanne HC La Chaux-de-Fonds Anaheim Ducks Calgary Flames EHC Biel
National team	Switzerland
NHL Draft	Undrafted
Playing career	2001–2020

Jonas Hiller (born 12 February 1982) is a former professional ice hockey goaltender from Switzerland. He played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Anaheim Ducks and the Calgary Flames. Jonas started his NHL journey with the Ducks in 2007. He was not chosen in the NHL Entry Draft, which means he was an "undrafted" player. Hiller also played in the National League (NL) in Switzerland for HC Davos and EHC Biel.

Playing Career

As a young player, Jonas Hiller took part in the 1996 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. He played with a team from Zürich, Switzerland.

While playing for HC Davos, Hiller helped his team win the Swiss championship three times: in 2002, 2005, and 2007. He also won the Spengler Cup in 2004 and 2006. In the 2006–07 season, Hiller had his best year for wins, with 28 victories in 44 games. After this great season, the Anaheim Ducks in the NHL signed him in May 2007.

Hiller played his first game for the Ducks on September 30, 2007. His team beat the Los Angeles Kings 4–1 in London, England. He only let in one goal out of 23 shots, helping his team win.

The Ducks' general manager, Brian Burke, quickly saw that Hiller was ready to be the main backup goalie. Because of this, the Ducks moved their other backup goalie, Ilya Bryzgalov, to another team. In his first NHL season (2007–08), Hiller had a great goals against average (GAA) of 2.06 and a .926 save percentage in 23 games.

Jonas Hiller got his first NHL shutout in the 2008–09 season. He stopped every shot against the Los Angeles Kings, winning 2–0. Because he played so well, the Ducks chose Hiller to be their starting goalie for the 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs. He started his first playoff game on April 16, 2009, and got another shutout against the San Jose Sharks. He stopped 35 shots in that game.

Hiller and the Ducks surprised everyone by beating the Sharks in six games. The Sharks had won the Presidents' Trophy for being the best team in the regular season. This was only the fourth time in NHL history that the top team was knocked out in the first round of the playoffs. The Ducks then played against the Detroit Red Wings, who were the defending champions. Detroit won that series in seven games. Many people believed that Hiller's amazing goaltending was the only reason the Ducks were able to play so well against the champions.

On January 30, 2010, Hiller signed a new four-year contract with the Ducks. The very next day, the Ducks traded their other main goalie, Jean-Sébastien Giguère, to another team. This showed that Hiller was now definitely the Ducks' number one goalie. Hiller was even chosen to play in the 2011 National Hockey League All-Star Game.

After the All-Star weekend, Hiller felt unwell in a game on February 2. He sat out some games but returned to play. However, the symptoms came back, and he missed the rest of the season. In August 2011, Hiller said he was feeling much better.

During the shorter 2012–13 NHL season, Hiller helped the Ducks finish second in their conference. However, in the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Ducks were again knocked out by the Detroit Red Wings in a seven-game series.

On July 1, 2014, Hiller's contract with Anaheim ended. He then signed a two-year contract with the Calgary Flames. In his first season with Calgary (2014–15), he became their main goalie. He played in most of their regular season games and seven of their playoff games. In the playoffs, he was sometimes replaced by backup goalie Karri Rämö. The Flames lost their second-round series to Hiller's old team, the Ducks.

Hiller had a tough time during the 2015–16 season. He had a record of 9 wins, 11 losses, and 1 overtime loss. After this season, Calgary decided not to sign Hiller again.

On April 19, 2016, Hiller agreed to a three-year contract with EHC Biel in Switzerland. He later signed an extension to play through the 2019-20 season. Before the 2019-20 season began, Hiller announced that he planned to retire from professional hockey at the end of that season. On March 16, 2020, Jonas Hiller officially announced his retirement.

International Play

Jonas Hiller played as the goalie for the Swiss national team in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada. Switzerland finished in eighth place after losing to the United States in the quarterfinals. He also played goalie for Switzerland in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. In Sochi, Switzerland finished ninth after losing to Latvia.

Personal Life

Jonas Hiller can speak three languages: English, German, and French. He is known for using the butterfly style of goaltending. This is a common way for goalies to block shots by dropping to their knees with their pads spread wide.

Awards and Honours

Records

• Shares the record for most wins in a row in one NHL regular season – 14 wins (from December 6, 2013, to January 12, 2014).

Images for kids

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  Hiller with the Ducks in 2012

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  Hiller with Switzerland during the 2010 Winter Olympics