Ylönen Returns To High Expectations
[by Sean Broderick - 17 March, 1998]
(from www.euroreport.com)

WASHINGTON--Phoenix C Juha Ylönen returned to action last night in
a 2-1 loss at Washington after missing two games with an ankle injury.
Ylönen centered a line between Brad Isbister and Jim Cummins. He got
12:55 of ice time in 17 shifts, had zero points and was not credited for a
shot on goal. 

"It was pretty hard. I didn't expect it to be that hard," Ylönen told the
EuroReport after the game. "The game is so fast. It took me a couple of
shifts to get going."

Unfortunately, those shifts did not come as quick as Ylönen or his coach
would have liked.

"It was tough to get him out there for the first 10 minutes," Phoenix coach
Jim Schoenfeld said. "We had so many penalties to kill [four in the first
period], and I did not want Juha's first shift to be on the penalty kill, even
though he is a good penalty killer."

Schoenfeld added that he is looking to Ylönen [1+10=11 in 54 games] to
help pick up the scoring slack with forwards Keith Tkachuk and Craig
Janney out of action. 

"He can create a lot of chances," Schoenfeld said. "We need him to step
up along with everybody else."

Despite the fact that he has just one goal this season, Ylönen has the skills
to put points on the board. Last season, he led the AHL's Springfield
Falcons in assists (41) and points (61), his first in North America. The
former Jokerit centerman also led the team in playoff scoring with 21
points in 17 games.

Now, with the Coyotes missing some of their well-known scorers, Ylönen
may get a chance to show some of that scoring touch on NHL ice.