Finland women's national ice hockey team

The Finnish women's national ice hockey team represents Finland at the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Women's 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. Finland's national women's program is ranked third in the world by the IIHF and has 5,858 active players as of 2019.[2]

Finnish national women's ice hockey team at the Women's Air Canada Cup 2008 in Ravensburg, Germany.
Finland against Russia in 2015 world championships

Finland
Nickname(s)Naisleijonat ('Lady Lions')
AssociationFinnish Ice Hockey Association
Head coachPasi Mustonen
AssistantsKari Eloranta
Juuso Toivola
Vesa Virta
CaptainJenni Hiirikoski
Most gamesJenni Hiirikoski (357)
Top scorerRiikka Sallinen (138)
Most pointsRiikka Sallinen (315)
Team colors   
IIHF codeFIN
Ranking
Current IIHF3 (30 March 2022)[1]
Highest IIHF3 (first in 2003)
Lowest IIHF4 (first in 2006)
First international
Finland  6–0  Norway
(Copenhagen, Denmark; 26 December 1988)
Biggest win
Finland  34–0  Czechoslovakia
(Düsseldorf, West Germany; 4 April 1989)
Biggest defeat
Canada  15–0  Finland
(St. John's, Canada; 12 November 2010)
World Championships
Appearances20 (first in 1990)
Best result Silver: (2019)
European Championships
Appearances5 (first in 1989)
Best result Gold: (1989, 1991, 1993, 1995)
Olympics
Appearances7 (first in 1998)
Medals Bronze (1998, 2010, 2018, 2022)
International record (W–L–T)
198–169–12
Finland women's national ice hockey team
Medal record
Olympic Games
1998 NaganoTeam
2010 VancouverTeam
2018 PyeongchangTeam
2022 BeijingTeam
World Championships
2019 Finland
1990 Canada
1992 Finland
1994 United States
1997 Canada
1999 Finland
2000 Canada
2004 Canada
2008 China
2009 Finland
2011 Switzerland
2015 Sweden
2017 United States
2021 Canada
European Championships
1989 West Germany
1991 Czechoslovakia
1993 Denmark
1995 Latvia
1996 Russia

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). Finland's main rival is 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.[3]

Tournament record

Olympic Games
GamesFinish
1998 Nagano Bronze
2002 Salt Lake City4th
2006 Turin4th
2010 Vancouver Bronze
2014 Sochi5th
2018 Pyeongchang Bronze
2022 Beijing Bronze

World Championships

Breaks indicate Olympic years.

YearLocationResult
1990Ottawa Bronze
1992Tampere Bronze
1994Lake Placid Bronze
1997Ontario Bronze
1999Espoo Bronze
2000Ontario Bronze
2001Minnesota4th
2003BeijingCancelled
2004Halifax and Dartmouth Bronze
2005Linköping and Norrköping4th
2007Winnipeg and Selkirk4th
2008Harbin Bronze
2009Hämeenlinna Bronze
2011Zurich Bronze
2012Burlington4th
2013Ottawa4th
2015Malmö Bronze
2016Kamloops4th
2017Plymouth Bronze
2019Espoo Silver
2020Halifax and TruroCancelled[4]
2021Calgary Bronze
2022

European Championship
YearLocationResult
1989Füssen, Landsberg and Kaufbeuren Gold
1992Frydek-Mistek, Havirov Gold
1994Esbjerg Gold
1997Riga Gold
1999Yaroslavl Bronze

3/4 Nations Cup
  • 1995 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 1996 – Won Bronze Medal
  • 1997 – Won Bronze Medal
  • 1998 – Won Bronze Medal
  • 1999 – Won Bronze Medal
  • 2000 – Won Bronze Medal (4 nations Cup)
  • 2001 – Won Silver Medal
  • 2002 – Won Bronze Medal (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2003 – Won Bronze Medal (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2004 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2005 – Won Bronze Medal (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2006 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2007 – Won Bronze Medal (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2008 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2009 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2010 – Won Bronze Medal (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2011 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2012 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2013 – Won Silver Medal (4 nations Cup)
  • 2014 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2015 – Won Bronze Medal (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2016 – Won Bronze Medal (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2017 – Won Bronze Medal (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2018 – Won Bronze Medal (4 Nations Cup)

Women's Nations Cup

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

  • 2003 – Won Bronze Medal (Air Canada Cup)
  • 2004 – Finished in 4th place (Air Canada Cup)
  • 2005 – Won Silver Medal (Air Canada Cup)
  • 2006 – Won Silver Medal (Air Canada Cup)
  • 2007 – Finished in 6th place (Air Canada Cup)
  • 2008 – Won Silver Medal (Air Canada Cup)
  • 2009 – Finished in 5th place ( MLP Nations Cup)
  • 2010 – Finished in 5th place ( MLP Nations Cup)
  • 2011 – Finished in 6th place ( MLP Nations Cup)
  • 2012 – Won Silver Medal (Meco Cup)
  • 2013 – Won Bronze Medal (Meco Cup)
  • 2014 – Won Gold Medal (Meco Cup)
  • 2015 – Won Bronze Medal (Meco Cup)
  • 2016 – Won Silver Medal (Women's Nations Cup)
  • 2017 – Won Gold Medal (Women's Nations Cup)
  • 2018 – Won Bronze Medal (Women's Nations Cup)

Canada Cup
  • 2009 Canada Cup – Won Bronze Medal

Team

Current roster
Main article: List of Finland women's national ice hockey team rosters

The roster for the 2022 Winter Olympics was announced on 20 January 2022.[5]

Head coach: Pasi Mustonen

No. Pos. Name Height Weight Birthdate Team
1GEveliina Mäkinen1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)68 kg (150 lb) (1995-04-12)12 April 1995 (aged 26) Brynäs IF
2DSini Karjalainen1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)68 kg (150 lb) (1999-01-30)30 January 1999 (aged 23) Vermont Catamounts
6DJenni Hiirikoski1.62 m (5 ft 4 in)62 kg (137 lb) (1987-03-30)30 March 1987 (aged 34) Luleå HF
7DSanni Rantala1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)63 kg (139 lb) (2002-07-08)8 July 2002 (aged 19) Kiekko-Espoo
8DElla Viitasuo1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)69 kg (152 lb) (1996-05-27)27 May 1996 (aged 25) Kiekko-Espoo
9DNelli Laitinen1.69 m (5 ft 7 in)62 kg (137 lb) (2002-04-29)29 April 2002 (aged 19) Kiekko-Espoo
10FElisa Holopainen1.66 m (5 ft 5 in)58 kg (128 lb) (2001-12-27)27 December 2001 (aged 20) Kiekko-Espoo
12FSanni Vanhanen1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)57 kg (126 lb) (2005-07-01)1 July 2005 (aged 16) Tappara U16
15DMinttu Tuominen1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)73 kg (161 lb) (1990-06-26)26 June 1990 (aged 31) Kiekko-Espoo
16FPetra Nieminen1.69 m (5 ft 7 in)68 kg (150 lb) (1999-05-04)4 May 1999 (aged 22) Luleå HF
18GMeeri Räisänen1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)66 kg (146 lb) (1989-12-02)2 December 1989 (aged 32) JYP U20 Akatemia
23FSanni Hakala1.54 m (5 ft 1 in)54 kg (119 lb) (1997-10-31)31 October 1997 (aged 24) HV71
24FViivi Vainikka1.66 m (5 ft 5 in)67 kg (148 lb) (2001-12-23)23 December 2001 (aged 20) Luleå HF
27FJulia Liikala1.66 m (5 ft 5 in)63 kg (139 lb) (2001-03-20)20 March 2001 (aged 20) HIFK
28FJenniina Nylund1.71 m (5 ft 7 in)64 kg (141 lb) (1999-06-18)18 June 1999 (aged 22) St. Cloud State Huskies
32FEmilia Vesa1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)66 kg (146 lb) (2001-01-03)3 January 2001 (aged 21) Kiekko-Espoo
33FMichelle Karvinen1.67 m (5 ft 6 in)65 kg (143 lb) (1990-03-27)27 March 1990 (aged 31) Malmö Redhawks
34FSofianna Sundelin1.69 m (5 ft 7 in)55 kg (121 lb) (2003-01-13)13 January 2003 (aged 19) Team Kuortane
36GAnni Keisala1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)80 kg (180 lb) (1997-04-05)5 April 1997 (aged 24) Ilves
40FNoora Tulus1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)56 kg (123 lb) (1995-08-15)15 August 1995 (aged 26) Luleå HF
61FTanja Niskanen1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)72 kg (159 lb) (1992-09-11)11 September 1992 (aged 29) KalPa
77FSusanna Tapani1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)68 kg (150 lb) (1993-03-02)2 March 1993 (aged 28) KRS Vanke Rays
88DRonja Savolainen1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)75 kg (165 lb) (1997-11-29)29 November 1997 (aged 24) Luleå HF

IIHF Women's World Championship Directorate awards

See also

References
  1. "IIHF Women's World Ranking". IIHF. 30 March 2022. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  2. "IIHF Member National Association: Finland". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 26 June 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. "Statement from IIHF". International Ice Hockey Federation. 15 April 2019. Retrieved 7 July 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. Merk, Martin (7 March 2020). "Women's Worlds cancelled". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 19 March 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. Aykroyd, Lucas (20 January 2022). "Finnish women seek another medal". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 20 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  6. Podnieks, Andrew (2009). Hockey Facts and Stats 2009–10. Toronto: HarperCollins. p. 546. ISBN 9781554686216.
  7. Collins gem Hockey Facts and Stats 2009–10, p.542, Andrew Podnieks, Harper Collins Publishers Ltd, Toronto, Canada, ISBN 978-1-55468-621-6
  8. "Awards" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 January 2018. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
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