Dwight Helminen

Dwight Edward Helminen (born June 22, 1983) is an American former professional ice hockey center who most recently played with the Kalamazoo Wings of the ECHL. His brother Lars plays with Linz EHC of the EBEL.

Playing career
Helminen was born in Hancock, Michigan, and raised in Brighton, Michigan. As a youth, he played in the 1997 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Detroit Compuware minor ice hockey team.

He was drafted 244th overall in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft by the Edmonton Oilers. Dwight played junior hockey for the U.S. Junior National Team in the United States Hockey League (USHL) and college hockey at the University of Michigan for the Wolverines. On March 3, 2004, the New York Rangers acquired his rights from the Oilers along with a 2004 second round draft pick and Steve Valiquette in exchange for Petr Nedvěd and Jussi Markkanen.

After turning professional, Helminen would play for the Charlotte Checkers in the ECHL and the Hartford Wolf Pack in the American Hockey League (AHL), before signing with JYP Jyväskylä in the Finnish SM-liiga in 2007.

Helminen signed a one-year contract with the Carolina Hurricanes on July 3, 2008. He was then assigned to the Hurricanes' affiliate, the Albany River Rats of the AHL. Helminen made his NHL debut in the 2008–09 season after an injury to Brandon Sutter. In his 4th career NHL game, while playing against the Toronto Maple Leafs at home, Helminen scored his first career NHL goal and tallied his first and only career NHL assist. It was the highest amount of time on ice he had gotten in the NHL, and his playing time remained consistently high relative to the rest of Helminen's career for the next four games before he was sent back to the AHL to play for the Hurricanes' affiliate in Albany. He would be called back to the Hurricanes and played four games in early March 2009 as a few Hurricanes' forwards missed games, did not play for the Hurricanes' next three games, then returned to the lineup on March 18 to play in each of the Hurricanes' remaining games. This unusual schedule of games, combined with Carolina's late season push towards the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs, meant that Helminen played in 13 consecutive wins for the Hurricanes as he avoided perfectly a three game winless streak for the team in mid-March. He had played in 23 regular season games by season's end with the Hurricanes, as well as one playoff game.

On July 16, 2009, Helminen signed a one-year contract with the San Jose Sharks. In the 2009–10 season, on February 11, 2010, Helminen scored his first goal with the Sharks, against the Detroit Red Wings. On April 22, 2010, he scored a goal against the Colorado Avalanche in the Sharks' first-round playoff series.

Midway through the 2011–12 season, Helminen left KLH Chomutov of the Czech first division league to return to North America, signing with the Kalamazoo Wings of the ECHL on February 6, 2012.