Kahkonen, 25, split the season with the Minnesota Wild and Sharks, appearing in 36 games and recording a 14-14-4 record with a 2.87 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage. After the Sharks acquired him on Mar. 21, 2022 in a trade, Kahkonen appeared in 11 games and earned a 2-6-1 record with a 2.86 GAA and .916 SV%. He finished the season ranked fourth among rookie goaltenders in wins and was fifth in save percentage (min. five games played). He set a season-best 42-save effort against Colorado on Mar. 31, his second highest save total in his career.
Over the course of his NHL career, Kahkonen has appeared in 65 games with a 33-23-5 record, 2.88 GAA and .908 SV% along with two shutouts with Minnesota and San Jose. He has also played in the American Hockey League with the Iowa Wild, recording a 42-20-17 record along with a 2.45 GAA, .916 SV% and 13 shutouts in 73 games. In 2019-20 he was awarded the Baz Bastien Memorial Award, given to the best goaltender in the AHL, was named to the AHL First All-Star team and in 2018-19, led the league in shutouts in 2018-19 (six) and was named to the AHL All-Star Game.
Prior to his NHL career, he primarily played in Finland's top league, Liiga, with Lukko. In the 2017-18 season he appeared in 56 games, earning a 20-23-12 record with a 2.20 GAA, .922 SV%, and shutouts (six). He finished fifth among Liiga goaltenders in save percentage and led the league in shutouts. In his Liiga career, he appeared in 177 games with a 38-50-27 record, 2.43 GAA and .918 SV% along with nine shutouts.
Internationally, he has represented Team Finland at the 2016 World Junior Championship. He helped Finland win the Gold Medal, winning all four games he appeared in.
The six-foot-two, 217-pound native of Helsinki, Finland was originally selected by Minnesota in the 2014 NHL Draft (fourth round, 109th overall).
