2024–25 Naisten Liiga season

42nd ice hockey season of the Naisten Liiga

Sports season
2024–25 Naisten Liiga season
LeagueNaisten Liiga
SportIce hockey
Defending championsIFK Helsinki (2023–24)
Duration6 September 2024 (2024-09-06) – 16 February 2025 (2025-02-16)
Number of games32
Number of teams9
Seasons
2025–26 →

The 2024–25 Naisten Liiga season will be the 42nd ice hockey season of the Naisten Liiga (NSML).

HIFK are the reigning 2023 Aurora Borealis Cup champions and Kiekko-Espoo hold the 2023–24 regular season title.

League changes

Postseason format

Adjustments to the Naisten Liiga postseason format were approved by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association in May 2024 and included extending the playoff semifinals and finals from best-of-five to best-of-seven series.[1]

The league qualifiers will be a best-of-five series played by the last place (i.e. ninth ranked) team of the Naisten Liiga and the winner of the Naisten Mestis playoffs, regardless of the teams.[1]

Coaching changes

Team Previous coach New coach Details
KalPa Mika Väärälä Artturi Rouhiainen Väärälä announced he would not continue as head coach of KalPa on 17 March 2024, a day after successfully coaching the team to its second consecutive Finnish Championship bronze medal. Specifics regarding his departure were not reported, however the relationship between the club and coach appeared amicable and he wished the team much success in the future.[2]
Rouhiainen was announced as the new head coach of KalPa on 20 March 2024. The 29-year old spent the 2023–24 season as head coach of KalPa's girls' under-15 team and associate head coach of the girls' under-16 team, while finishing a degree in physical education.[3]
Kärpät Satu Kiipeli Teemu Koivula After starting the 2023–24 season as an assistant coach with Kärpät, Kiipeli took on head coaching duties in October 2023 following the resignation of head coach Sanna Lankosaari earlier that month. The team achieved a 9-23 win–loss record on the season and were swept in the quarterfinals of the 2024 playoffs by eventual Aurora Borealis Cup champions HIFK.
Koivula was head coach of RoKi during the 2023–24 season, in which the team finished at the bottom of the Naisten Liiga standings. He was announced as the new head coach of Kärpät on 27 March 2024 and, at the same time, it was confirmed that Kiipeli would remain with the team and return to her previous role as assitant coach.[4]
RoKi Teemu Koivula Oona Parviainen [5][6]

Player movements

Note: This section does not record all player signings. It is limited to player movements involving national team players (from any country), international import players, and extra-league signings. Player nationality is limited to primary nation of IIHF eligibility; some players may hold citizenship in more than one country.

Player Nat Previous team 2024–25 team ref.
Incoming players
Lea Glosíková (F) Slovakia Hoosac Owls (NEPSAC) TPS Turku [7]
Manuela Heidenberger (F) Italy EV Bozen Eagles (EWHL/IHLW) HPK Hämeenlinna [8]
Anni Keisala (G) Finland HV71 (SDHL) HPK Hämeenlinna [9]
Peppi Kähkönen (F) Finland Hamline Pipers (NCAA D3) TPS Turku [10]
Anni Montonen (F) Finland HV71 (SDHL) Kiekko-Espoo
Intra-league transfers
Tiina Ranne (G) Finland KalPa Kuopio TPS Turku [11]
Karoliina Rantamäki (F) Finland IFK Helsinki Kiekko-Espoo [12]
Mikaela Saukkonen (D) Finland IFK Helsinki HPK Hämeenlinna [8]
Peppi Virtanen (F) Finland Team Kuortane HPK Hämeenlinna [13]
Departing players
Kati Asikainen (G) Finland Kärpät Oulu HC Fribourg-Gottéron (SWHL A) [14]
Elisa Holopainen (F) Finland KalPa Kuopio Frölunda HC (SDHL) [15]
Oona Koukkula (D) Finland HPK Hämeenlinna Brynäs IF (SDHL) [16]
Kiia Lahtinen (G) Finland IFK Helsinki Maine Black Bears (NCAA D1) [17]
Julia Liikala (F) Finland IFK Helsinki HC Ambrì-Piotta Girls (SWHL A) [18]
Michaela Pejzlová (F) Czech Republic IFK Helsinki HC Ambrì-Piotta Girls (SWHL A) [18]
Sanni Rantala (D) Finland KalPa Kuopio Frölunda HC (SDHL) [15]
Clara Rozier (F) France IFK Helsinki SC Bern (SWHL A) [19]
Kassidy Sauvé (G) Canada HPK Hämeenlinna SDE Hockey (SDHL) [20]
Sanni Vanhanen (F) Finland IFK Helsinki Brynäs IF (SDHL) [21]
Siiri Yrjölä (D) Finland IFK Helsinki St. Cloud State Huskies (NCAA D1)

Teams

class=notpageimage|
Location of teams in the Naisten Liiga
Team Location Home venue Head coach Captain
HIFK  Helsinki Pirkkolan jäähalli Saara Niemi
HPK Hämeenlinna Jääliikuntakeskus Hakio Jari Risku Heta Seikkula
Ilves Tampere Tesoman jäähalli Marjo Voutilainen Jenna Lehtiniemi
KalPa Kuopio Niiralan Monttu Artturi Rouhiainen Johanna Juutilainen
Kiekko-Espoo Espoo Tapiolan harjoitusareena Sami Haapanen Reetta Valkjärvi
Kärpät Oulu Raksilan jäähalli Teemu Koivula Aino Kaijankoski
RoKi Rovaniemi Lappi Areena Oona Parviainen Eveliina Ollila
Team Kuortane Kuortane Kuortaneen jäähalli Juuso Nieminen Jenniina Kuoppala
TPS Turku Kupittaan jäähalli Terhi Mertanen Pihla Hämeenniemi

Regular season

The regular season is scheduled to begin on Friday, 6 September 2024. The season opening weekend will be hosted in Turku, with eight of the nine games to be played at Turkuhalli and the Sunday match beween Team Kuortane and HPK to be played at Kupittaan jäähalli.

Schedule

Regular Season
September 2024
Date Home Score Visitor OT Attn Notes Recap
6 Septmeber TPS K-Espoo [Recap 1]
7 September K-Espoo Ilves
HIFK Kärpät
HPK RoKi
Kuortane KalPa
8 September HIFK RoKi
TPS Kärpät
Kuortane HPK
Ilves KalPa
13 September KalPa Kuortane
14 September TPS HPK
Kärpät Ilves
RoKi K-Espoo
15 September Kärpät K-Espoo
RoKi Ilves
Kuortane HIFK HIFK is scheduled for two games on the same day. It will not be physically possible for the team to play both games due to the distance between venues. Future adjustments to the schedule are expected.
KalPa HIFK
20 September HPK TPS
21 September HIFK K-Espoo
HPK Kärpät
Ilves KalPa
Kuortane RoKi
22 September K-Espoo Kärpät
Ilves Kuortane
TPS HIFK
KalPa RoKi
28 September Kärpät HPK
Ilves TPS
RoKi HIFK
KalPa Kuortane
29 September Kuortane Ilves
RoKi HPK
Kärpät HIFK
KalPa K-Espoo

References

  1. ^ a b "Naisten Liigan ja Mestiksen pelaamistapa päätetty". Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 16 May 2024. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  2. ^ Seppä, Lassi (17 March 2024). "Mika Väärälä ei jatka KalPan naisten päävalmentajana". Jatkoaika (in Finnish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  3. ^ Nousiainen, Ville (20 March 2024). "KalPan naiset nimesi uuden päävalmentajan". Savon Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 11 June 2024.
  4. ^ Pirkkiö, Jaarli (28 March 2024). "Teemu Koivula siirtyy Kärppien naisten liigajoukkueen valmentajaksi". Lapin Kansa (in Finnish). Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  5. ^ Hyötylä, Ville (28 March 2024). "Liigakonkari Oona Parviainen ottaa RoKin naiset komentoonsa – liigajoukkueelle perustetaan myös akatemiajoukkue". Lapin Kansa (in Finnish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  6. ^ Seppä, Lassi (24 March 2024). "Tuore päävalmentaja Oona Parviainen kasaa RoKia kuin Diilissä konsanaan − sponsoreilla ja akatemiajoukkueella on iso merkitys tulevaisuudessa". Jatkoaika (in Finnish). Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  7. ^ TPS Naiset [@tpsnaiset] (22 May 2024). "🤝 𝙏𝙀𝙍𝙑𝙀𝙏𝙐𝙇𝙊𝘼 𝙏𝙐𝙍𝙐𝙉 𝙋𝘼𝙇𝙇𝙊𝙎𝙀𝙐𝙍𝘼𝘼𝙉 - @leaglosikova ¶ Hyökkääjä Lea Glosíková on tepsiläinen kaudella 2024-2025..." (in Finnish and English). Turku, Finland. Retrieved 16 June 2024 – via Instagram.
  8. ^ a b Seppä, Lassi (14 May 2024). "HIFK:n tuplamestari Mikaela Saukkonen HPK:hon − viime kauden ulkomaalaistähdet jatkavat, myös kaksi nuorta mukaan". Jatkoaika (in Finnish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  9. ^ Lainesalo, Joonas (5 May 2024). "HPK:n naisten joukkue vahvistuu: Anni Keisala jatkaa mainioiden maalivahtien sarjaa". Hämeen Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  10. ^ Seppä, Lassi (22 May 2024). "Huippumaalivahdin sisko Yhdysvalloista Turkuun − Peppi Kähkönen TPS:ään". Jatkoaika (in Finnish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  11. ^ Seppä, Lassi (21 March 2024). "Kokenut Tiina Ranne jättää KalPan seitsemän yhteisen kauden jälkeen − siirtyy TPS:n riveihin". Jatkoaika (in Finnish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  12. ^ Hirvonen, Hinni (17 May 2024). "Karoliina Rantamäki, 46, jatkaa uraansa Espoossa: "Sydämeni on aina ollut sininen"". Yle Urheilu (in Finnish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  13. ^ Lainesalo, Joonas (18 June 2024). "HPK:n naisten joukkue on lähes valmis – Seura julkaisi tiistaina kymmenen uutta sopimusta". Hämeen Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 19 June 2024.
  14. ^ Stettler, Frank (23 April 2024). "Vier neue Ausländerinnen und ein neuer Trainer für Gottérons Frauen". Freiburger Nachrichten [de] (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  15. ^ a b Olausson, Robin (9 April 2024). "Frölunda värvar Elisa Holopainen och Sanni Rantala". HockeySverige (in Swedish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  16. ^ Mauritzon, Amelia (30 April 2024). "Brynäs förstärker i SDHL – värvar finsk VM-back". Arbetarbladet (in Swedish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  17. ^ Seppä, Lassi (1 May 2024). "HIFK:n mestarimaalivahti Kiia Lahtisen ura jatkuu Yhdysvalloissa". Jatkoaika (in Finnish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  18. ^ a b Kennedy, Ian (16 June 2024). "PWHL Rumblings: Gilmore Retires, Gender Inclusion, Ottawa's Arena, and More". The Hockey News. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  19. ^ Kennedy, Ian (24 April 2024). "Swiss League Making Significant Gains While SDHL Falls Behind". The Hockey News. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  20. ^ Karlsson, Måns (24 April 2024). "SDHL-klubben värvar ny målvakt". HockeySverige (in Swedish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  21. ^ Mauritzon, Amelia (17 May 2024). "Brynäs värvar poängdrottning från Finland". Gefle Dagblad [sv] (in Swedish). Retrieved 16 June 2024.

Game recaps

  1. ^ "Ottelupöytäkirja – Naisten Liiga – Ott.nr.: 4878" (PDF). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). Retrieved 22 June 2024.
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