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Canucks’ Hansen signs with Finnish club Tappara

Jannik Hansen has become just the second Canuck to find work overseas, signing a lockout deal with SM-liiga club Tappara.

Hansen confirmed the signing to Vancouver’s News 1130 on Tuesday.

Tappara has been a busy club over the last week, having also agreed to terms with former Minnesota Wild defenseman Kurtis Foster.

The club’s GM, Mikko Leinonen, said that Hansen will arrive in Finland tonight and soon join Foster in the Tappara lineup.

The signing is a big one for the Finnish club as Hansen, one of the NHL’s few Danish players, has gone from a ninth-round pick to a key contributor on Vancouver’s Presidents’ Trophy-winning team.

In 2011-12, Hansen posted career highs in goals (16), assists (23) and points (39), often getting the opportunity to skate on a wing with Daniel and Henrik Sedin.

That breakout season came after Hansen inked a three-year, $4.05 million extension with the Canucks last July.

Of note, Leinonen told News 1130 that Hansen’s insurance has been covered for the duration of his stay in the Finnish league, but that the winger won’t make anything after that.

As mentioned above, Hansen becomes just the second Canuck to sign overseas -- teammate Dale Weise signed with Tillburg of the Dutch league earlier in October.

Hansen’s reason for finding work was the need to resume competitive activity. He hopes to play a key role in Denmark’s Olympic qualifying tournament, set for early February.