Finland women's national ice hockey team

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 as of 2019.[2]

Finland
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Naisleijonat ('Lady Lions')
AssociationFinnish Ice Hockey Association
Head coachJuuso Touvila
AssistantsSaara Niemi
Mikko Palsola
CaptainJenni Hiirikoski
Most gamesKaroliina Rantamäki (431)
Top scorerRiikka Sallinen (138)
Most pointsRiikka Sallinen (351)
Team colors   
IIHF codeFIN
Ranking
Current IIHF4 Decrease 1 (28 August 2023)[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
Appearances24 (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)
356–251–13
Finland women's national ice hockey team
Medal record
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 1998 Nagano Team
Bronze medal – third place 2010 Vancouver Team
Bronze medal – third place 2018 Pyeongchang Team
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Beijing Team
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2019 Finland
Bronze medal – third place 1990 Canada
Bronze medal – third place 1992 Finland
Bronze medal – third place 1994 United States
Bronze medal – third place 1997 Canada
Bronze medal – third place 1999 Finland
Bronze medal – third place 2000 Canada
Bronze medal – third place 2004 Canada
Bronze medal – third place 2008 China
Bronze medal – third place 2009 Finland
Bronze medal – third place 2011 Switzerland
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Sweden
Bronze medal – third place 2017 United States
Bronze medal – third place 2021 Canada
Bronze medal – third place 2024 United States
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 1989 West Germany
Gold medal – first place 1991 Czechoslovakia
Gold medal – first place 1993 Denmark
Gold medal – first place 1995 Latvia
Bronze medal – third place 1996 Russia
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

History edit

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.[3]

Tournament record edit

Olympic Games edit

Games Finish
  1998 Nagano   Bronze
  2002 Salt Lake City 4th
  2006 Turin 4th
  2010 Vancouver   Bronze
  2014 Sochi 5th
  2018 Pyeongchang   Bronze
  2022 Beijing   Bronze
  2026 Milan / Cortina

World Championships edit

Breaks indicate Olympic years.

Year Location Result
  1990 Ottawa   Bronze
  1992 Tampere   Bronze
  1994 Lake Placid   Bronze
  1997 Ontario   Bronze
  1999 Espoo   Bronze
  2000 Ontario   Bronze
  2001 Minnesota 4th
  2003 Beijing Cancelled
  2004 Halifax and Dartmouth   Bronze
  2005 Linköping and Norrköping 4th
  2007 Winnipeg and Selkirk 4th
  2008 Harbin   Bronze
  2009 Hämeenlinna   Bronze
  2011 Zürich   Bronze
  2012 Burlington 4th
  2013 Ottawa 4th
  2015 Malmö   Bronze
  2016 Kamloops 4th
  2017 Plymouth   Bronze
  2019 Espoo   Silver
  2020 Halifax and Truro Cancelled[4]
  2021 Calgary   Bronze
  2022 Frederikshavn and Herning 6th
  2023 Brampton 5th
  2024 Utica, New York   Bronze
  2025 České Budějovice

European Championship edit

Year Location Result
  1989 Füssen, Landsberg am Lech and Kaufbeuren   Gold
  1991 Frýdek-Místek, Havířov   Gold
  1993 Esbjerg   Gold
  1995 Riga   Gold
  1996 Yaroslavl   Bronze

3/4 Nations Cup edit

  • 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)
  • 2007Won Bronze Medal   (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2008 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2009 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2010Won Bronze Medal   (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2011 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2012 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2013Won Silver Medal   (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2014 – Finished in 4th place (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2015Won Bronze Medal   (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2016Won Bronze Medal   (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2017Won Bronze Medal   (4 Nations Cup)
  • 2018Won Bronze Medal   (4 Nations Cup)

Women's Nations Cup edit

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

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

Canada Cup edit

  • 2009 Canada Cup – Won Bronze Medal

Current roster edit

Roster for the 2024 IIHF Women's World Championship.[5][6]

Head coach: Juuso Toivola

No. Pos. Name Height Weight Birthdate Team
1 G Sanni Ahola 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in) 81 kg (179 lb) (2000-06-03) 3 June 2000 (age 23)   St. Cloud State Huskies
5 D Siiri Yrjölä 1.66 m (5 ft 5 in) 68 kg (150 lb) (2004-09-08) 8 September 2004 (age 19)   HIFK Helsinki
6 D Jenni HiirikoskiC 1.62 m (5 ft 4 in) 62 kg (137 lb) (1987-03-30) 30 March 1987 (age 37)   Luleå HF
7 D Sanni Rantala 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) 63 kg (139 lb) (2002-07-08) 8 July 2002 (age 21)   KalPa Kuopio
8 D Eve Savander 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) 68 kg (150 lb) (1998-09-02) 2 September 1998 (age 25)   MoDo Hockey
9 D Nelli Laitinen 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in) 62 kg (137 lb) (2002-04-29) 29 April 2002 (age 22)   Minnesota Golden Gophers
10 F Elisa Holopainen 1.66 m (5 ft 5 in) 58 kg (128 lb) (2001-12-27) 27 December 2001 (age 22)   KalPa Kuopio
12 F Sanni Vanhanen 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) 62 kg (137 lb) (2005-07-01) 1 July 2005 (age 18)   HIFK Helsinki
14 D Krista Parkkonen 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) 64 kg (141 lb) (2002-06-25) 25 June 2002 (age 21)   Vermont Catamounts
16 F Petra Nieminen 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in) 70 kg (150 lb) (1999-05-04) 4 May 1999 (age 24)   Luleå HF
20 F Anna-Kaisa Antti-Roiko 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) 62 kg (137 lb) (2004-05-21) 21 May 2004 (age 19)   Kärpät Oulu
22 F Julia Schalin 1.60 m (5 ft 3 in) 60 kg (130 lb) (2005-08-31) 31 August 2005 (age 18)   Kiekko-Espoo
24 F Viivi Vainikka 1.66 m (5 ft 5 in) 67 kg (148 lb) (2001-12-23) 23 December 2001 (age 22)   Luleå HF
28 F Jenniina Nylund 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in) 63 kg (139 lb) (1999-06-18) 18 June 1999 (age 24)   Brynäs IF
31 G Tiia Pajarinen 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) 69 kg (152 lb) (1998-04-17) 17 April 1998 (age 26)   Kiekko-Espoo
32 F Emilia Vesa 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) 66 kg (146 lb) (2001-01-03) 3 January 2001 (age 23)   Frölunda HC
33 F Michelle KarvinenA 1.67 m (5 ft 6 in) 65 kg (143 lb) (1990-03-27) 27 March 1990 (age 34)   Frölunda HC
34 F Sofianna Sundelin 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in) 57 kg (126 lb) (2003-01-13) 13 January 2003 (age 21)   St. Cloud State Huskies
36 G Anni Keisala 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) 80 kg (180 lb) (1997-04-05) 5 April 1997 (age 27)   HV71
40 F Noora TulusA 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) 62 kg (137 lb) (1995-08-15) 15 August 1995 (age 28)   Luleå HF
77 F Susanna Tapani 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) 68 kg (150 lb) (1993-03-02) 2 March 1993 (age 31)   PWHL Boston
88 D Ronja Savolainen 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) 76 kg (168 lb) (1997-11-29) 29 November 1997 (age 26)   Luleå HF
91 F Julia Liikala 1.66 m (5 ft 5 in) 64 kg (141 lb) (2001-03-20) 20 March 2001 (age 23)   HIFK Helsinki

Awards and honors edit

World Championship edit

Directorate awards edit

All-Star teams edit

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "IIHF Women's World Ranking". IIHF. 28 August 2023. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  2. ^ "IIHF Member National Association: Finland". IIHF. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
  3. ^ "Statement from IIHF". IIHF. 15 April 2019. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
  4. ^ Merk, Martin (7 March 2020). "Women's Worlds cancelled". IIHF. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  5. ^ "Naisleijonat MM-kisoihin tällä joukkueella". Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 11 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
  6. ^ "Team roster: Finland" (PDF). iihf.com. 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  7. ^ a b Podnieks, Andrew (2009). Hockey Facts and Stats 2009–10. Toronto: HarperCollins. p. 546. ISBN 9781554686216.
  8. ^ Collins gem Hockey Facts and Stats 2009–10, p.542, Andrew Podnieks, Harper Collins Publishers Ltd, Toronto, Canada, ISBN 978-1-55468-621-6
  9. ^ "Awards" (PDF). IIHF. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 January 2018. Retrieved 30 December 2017.

External links edit