Photo credit: Edmonton Oilers

Former Oilers forward Esa Tikkanen has begun auctioning off four of his Stanley Cup rings, reportedly in response to his ongoing legal battle for tax fraud in Finland.

Tikkanen was a consistent part of the 80s Oilers that dominated the NHL. It is where he spent the majority of his career, despite playing for five teams in total. It is also where he won four of his championships. Unfortunately though, life in retirement has not been the best for Tikkanen as he has been involved in an ongoing legal battle for tax fraud. This has lead to him auctioning off four of his Stanley Cup rings.

Tikkanen is auctioning off four of his five championship rings (keeping his first championship ring from 1985).

That being said, Tikkanen denies the fact that the rings are up for auction due to his legal battle. He did not provide a specific reason for the move, only noting that he’s been thinking about doing it for a long time. He told Finish news sources that the auction is, “in no way,” related to his aggravated tax fraud case. The following has been translated from Finnish.
Tikkanen has been in the public eye for his tax fraud charges in recent years. Tikkas is accused of aggravated tax fraud in the district court of Länsi-Uusimaa. According to MTV Urheilu, the main hearing of the case was scheduled for April 23, but it has been postponed, and there is no new date yet.

Is this settlement somehow related to your indictment for aggravated tax fraud? Have there been any financial challenges?

– In no way. This has been thought about for a little longer.

Tikkanen played in 877 career regular season NHL games throughout his career, including 522 games with the Edmonton Oilers. He potted 244 career goals and 630 points. He won the Stanley Cup five times including four with the Oilers. His final championship came in 1994 with the New York Rangers.