Finland women's national ice hockey team explained

Finland
Badge:Finland national ice hockey team logo.svg
Badge Size:200px
Nickname: ('Lady Lions')
Association:Finnish Ice Hockey Association
Coach:Juuso Touvila
Asst Coach:Saara Niemi
Mikko Palsola
Captain:Jenni Hiirikoski
Most Games:Karoliina Rantamäki (431)
Top Scorer:Riikka Sallinen (138)
Most Points:Riikka Sallinen (351)
Iihf Code:FIN
Iihf Max:3
Iihf Max Date:first in 2003
Iihf Min:4
Iihf Min Date:first in 2006
First Game: 6–0
(Copenhagen, Denmark; 26 December 1988)
Largest Win: 34–0
(Düsseldorf, West Germany; 4 April 1989)
Largest Loss: 15–0
(St. John's, Canada; 12 November 2010)
World Champ2 Name:World Championships
World Champ2 Apps:24
World Champ2 First:1990
World Champ2 Best: Silver: (2019)
Regional Name:European Championships
Regional Cup Apps:5
Regional Cup First:1989
Regional Cup Best: Gold: (1989, 1991, 1993, 1995)
Olympic Apps:7
Olympic First:1998
Olympic Medals: Bronze (1998, 2010, 2018, 2022)
Record:356–251–13

The Finnish women's national ice hockey team represents Finland at the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Women's World Championships, the Olympic Games, the Four Nations Cup, and other international-level women's ice hockey competitions. The women's national team is overseen by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association and its general manager is Tuula Puputti. Finland's national women's program is ranked third in the world by the IIHF and had 5,858 active players .[1]

History

Finland has finished third or fourth in almost every World Championships and Olympics, with one exception being a fifth place finish at the 2014 Winter Olympics and second place at the 2019 World Championship. They are ranked behind Canada (#2) and the United States (#1). Historically, Finland's primary rival was Sweden, which finished second to Canada at the 2006 Winter Olympics. Finland finished fourth, losing the game for the bronze medal to the United States. Finland defeated the United States for the first time, at the 2008 World Championship in China, 1–0 in overtime. Finland defeated Canada 4–3 for the first time at the 2017 World Championship in the United States. However, Finland lost the semi-final game against Canada in the same tournament, proceeding to win the bronze medal game.

At the 2019 World Championship, Finland reached the championship final for the first time in tournament history after beating Canada 4–2 in the semi-final. During the gold medal game, Petra Nieminen scored in overtime but her goal was overturned after a video review for goalie interference. The IIHF released a press statement the next day citing rules 186 and 183ii as the reasons for overturning the goal. Finland finished as runners-up and won a silver medal after losing to the United States in a shootout.[2]

Tournament record

Olympic Games

Games Finish
4th
4th
5th

World Championships

Breaks indicate Olympic years.

Year Location Result
4th
Cancelled
4th
4th
4th
4th
4th
Cancelled[3]
Frederikshavn and Herning6th
5th

3/4 Nations Cup

Women's Nations Cup

Formerly known as the Air Canada Cup, the MLP Nations Cup and the Meco Cup.

Canada Cup

Current roster

See main article: List of Finland women's national ice hockey team rosters.

Roster for the 2024 IIHF Women's World Championship.[4] [5]

Head coach: Juuso Toivola

No.Pos.NameHeightWeightBirthdateTeam
1 G 1.71m (05.61feet) 81abbr=onNaNabbr=on 3 June 2000 St. Cloud State Huskies
5 D 1.66m (05.45feet) 68abbr=onNaNabbr=on 8 September 2004 HIFK Helsinki
6 D C1.62m (05.31feet) 62abbr=onNaNabbr=on 30 March 1987 Luleå HF
7 D 1.73m (05.68feet) 63abbr=onNaNabbr=on 8 July 2002 KalPa Kuopio
8 D 1.68m (05.51feet) 68abbr=onNaNabbr=on 2 September 1998
9 D 1.69m (05.54feet) 62abbr=onNaNabbr=on 29 April 2002 Minnesota Golden Gophers
10 F 1.66m (05.45feet) 58abbr=onNaNabbr=on 27 December 2001 KalPa Kuopio
12 F 1.68m (05.51feet)62abbr=onNaNabbr=on1 July 2005 HIFK Helsinki
14 D 1.68m (05.51feet) 64abbr=onNaNabbr=on 25 June 2002 Vermont Catamounts
16 F 1.69m (05.54feet) 70abbr=onNaNabbr=on 4 May 1999 Luleå HF
20 F 1.68m (05.51feet) 62abbr=onNaNabbr=on 21 May 2004 Kärpät Oulu
22 F 1.6m (05.2feet) 60abbr=onNaNabbr=on 31 August 2005
24 F 1.66m (05.45feet) 67abbr=onNaNabbr=on 23 December 2001 Luleå HF
28 F 1.71m (05.61feet)63abbr=onNaNabbr=on18 June 1999 Brynäs IF
31 G 1.65m (05.41feet) 69abbr=onNaNabbr=on 17 April 1998 Kiekko-Espoo
32 F 1.77m (05.81feet)66abbr=onNaNabbr=on3 January 2001 Frölunda HC
33 F 1.67m (05.48feet) 65abbr=onNaNabbr=on 27 March 1990 Frölunda HC
34 F 1.69m (05.54feet)57abbr=onNaNabbr=on13 January 2003 St. Cloud State Huskies
36 G 1.75m (05.74feet) 80abbr=onNaNabbr=on 5 April 1997 HV71
40 F 1.65m (05.41feet) 62abbr=onNaNabbr=on 15 August 1995 Luleå HF
77 F 1.77m (05.81feet) 68abbr=onNaNabbr=on 2 March 1993
88 D 1.77m (05.81feet) 76abbr=onNaNabbr=on 29 November 1997 Luleå HF
91 F 1.66m (05.45feet) 64abbr=onNaNabbr=on 20 March 2001 HIFK Helsinki

Awards and honors

World Championship

Directorate awards

2007, 2008,[6] 2011, 2017, 2019

2021

1999[7]

2009,[8] 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019

2000

1990, 1994

All-Star teams

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: IIHF Member National Association: Finland. 26 June 2019. IIHF. en.
  2. Web site: 15 April 2019. Statement from IIHF. 7 July 2019. IIHF. en.
  3. Web site: Merk. Martin. 7 March 2020. Women's Worlds cancelled. IIHF. 19 March 2021.
  4. Web site: Naisleijonat MM-kisoihin tällä joukkueella . . 11 March 2024 . fi-fi . 11 March 2024.
  5. Web site: Team roster: Finland. 2 April 2024. 2 April 2024. iihf.com.
  6. Book: Podnieks, Andrew. Hockey Facts and Stats 2009–10. HarperCollins. 2009. 9781554686216. Toronto. 546.
  7. Collins gem Hockey Facts and Stats 2009–10, p.542, Andrew Podnieks, Harper Collins Publishers Ltd, Toronto, Canada,
  8. Web site: Awards . 30 December 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180118073218/https://reports.iihf.hockey/Hydra/178/IHW178000_85I_1_0.pdf . 18 January 2018 . . live .