Liiga

Last updated

Liiga
Current season, competition or edition:
Hockey current event.svg 2024–25 Liiga season
Liiga logo.svg
Formerly SM-sarja (1933–1975)
SM-liiga (1975–2013)
Sport Ice hockey
Founded1975;49 years ago (1975)
First season 1975–76
CEO Mikko Pulkkinen
MottoSe on totta (It's for real)
No. of teams16
Country Finland
Most recent
champion(s)		 Tappara (13th title)
(2023–24)
Most titles Tappara (13 titles)
TV partner(s) Telia Company, TV5
Level on pyramid Level 1
Relegation to Mestis
International cup(s) Champions Hockey League
Related
competitions		 Naisten Liiga
Official website Liiga.fi

The Liiga, colloquially called the Finnish Elite League in English or FM-ligan in Swedish, [1] [2] is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. The league comprises 16 teams from all around Finland with relegation and promotion between the Mestis. [3] [4] The winner of the Liiga playoffs is awarded the Kanada-malja at the end of each season. [5]

Contents

Teams from the Liiga participate in the IIHF's annual Champions Hockey League (CHL), competing for the European Trophy. Participation is based on the strength of the various leagues in Europe (excluding the European/Asian Kontinental Hockey League).

The Liiga was established in 1975 to replace the former SM-sarja, which was fundamentally an amateur competition. The Liiga is not directly overseen by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association, but the league and association have an agreement of cooperation. SM is a common abbreviation for Suomen mestaruus , "Finnish Champion".

History

The SM-liiga was established in 1975 to replace the amateur competition SM-sarja. Kalervo Kummola was elected to become the first chief executive officer of the SM-liiga, who served until 1987. [6] The SM-liiga wasn't established unter the Finnish ice Hockey Association that oversees all the other leagues and cups in the country. The playoffs are introduced in Finnish ice hockey for the first time during the inaugural SM-liiga season. [7]

At first there were 10 clubs in the SM-liiga. The league expanded to 12 teams in the 1988–89 season. In 2000, the SM-liiga was expanded by one team, after which the league was closed so that teams could not drop out of the league or move up from a lower league. For the 2005–2006 season, the Mestis winner KalPa was promoted to the series, which met the criteria required for a place in the league. [8] The league qualifiers were brought back for the 2008–09 season. However, as a condition for promotion, the Mestis team that cleared the qualifiers should have bought the shares of the losing Liiga team at the price determined by the league. Otherwise, the losing Liiga team would have continued playing in the league. [9] [10] Starting from the 2013–2014 season, the Liiga qualifiers were replaced by a license system where the winner of Mestis can apply for a Liiga license. If granted, the club will be promoted to the league after a transition period of one season. [11] [12]

SM-liiga clubs' former jerseys Liigan paidat jaakiekkomuseossa.jpg
SM-liiga clubs' former jerseys

The league changed its marketing name to just Liiga for the 2013–14 season, and introduced a new logo to match. [13] [14] [15] The 2019–20 Liiga season was terminated on March 13, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the decision, the final round of the regular season and the playoffs were not played, and the 2020 Finnish hockey championship was not awarded. [16]

For the 2024–25 season, Kiekko-Espoo were promoted to the Liiga as the league expanded to 16 teams. [17] The league was opened for relegation and promotion between the Mestis for the first time since 2013. [18]

According to a 2023 article by The Hockey Writers, the SM-liiga is considered one of the best leagues in Europe and the world along with the Swedish Hockey League and behind the Kontinental Hockey League. [19] Going into the 2024–25 CHL season, the Liiga was ranked the No. 3 league in Europe, allowing them to send their top four teams to compete in the CHL. [20]

Clubs

List of clubs

The team names are usually the traditional name of the club. All clubs are commonly known by the name of their team. Oy and Ab are the abbreviations for limited company in Finnish and Swedish respectively.

Team nameClub's registered nameLocationHome venueCapacity2023–24 season standing (playoffs)Titles SM-liigaTitles overall
HIFK Oy HIFK Hockey Ab Helsinki.vaakuna.svg Helsinki Helsinki Ice Hall 8,2006th (7th)47
HPK HPK Liiga Oy Hameenlinna.vaakuna.svg Hämeenlinna Patria-areena 5,36014th (did not qualify)22
Ilves Ilves-Hockey Oy Tampere.vaakuna.svg Tampere Nokia Arena 12,7002nd (5th)116
Jukurit Jukurit HC Oy Mikkeli.vaakuna.svg Mikkeli Ikioma Areena 4,2005th (6th)00
JYP JYP Jyväskylä Oy Jyvaskyla.vaakuna.svg Jyväskylä Synergia-areena 4,43713th (did not qualify)22
KalPa KalPa Hockey Oy Kuopio.vaakuna.svg Kuopio Olvi Arena 5,3007th (4th)00
Kiekko-Espoo Kiekko-Espoo Oy Espoo.vaakuna.svg Espoo Espoo Metro Areena 6,9824th (3rd) in Mestis (promoted)00
KooKoo KooKoo Hockey Oy Kouvola.vaakuna.2009.svg Kouvola Lumon arena 5,95012th (did not qualify)00
Kärpät Oulun Kärpät Oy Oulu.vaakuna.svg Oulu Oulun Energia Areena 6,3004th (3rd)88
Lukko Rauman Lukko Oy Rauma.vaakuna.svg Rauma Kivikylän Areena 4,5008th (9th)12
Pelicans Lahden Pelicans Oy Lahti.vaakuna.svg Lahti Isku Areena 4,4033rd (2nd)00
SaiPa Liiga-SaiPa Oy Lappeenranta.vaakuna.svg Lappeenranta Kisapuisto 4,82015th (did not qualify)00
Sport Hockey-Team Vaasan Sport Oy Vaasa.vaakuna.svg Vaasa Vaasa Arena 5,18510th (10th)00
Tappara Tamhockey Oy Tampere.vaakuna.svg Tampere Nokia Arena 12,7001st (1st)1320
TPS HC TPS Turku Oy Turku.vaakuna.svg Turku Gatorade Center 10,5009th (8th)1011
Ässät HC Ässät Pori Oy Porin vaakuna.svg Pori Isomäki Ice Hall 6,15011th (did not qualify)23

SM-liiga timeline

197019801990200020102020
75
76 		76
77 		77
78 		78
79 		79
80 		80
81 		81
82 		82
83 		83
84 		84
85 		85
86 		86
87 		87
88 		88
89 		89
90 		90
91 		91
92 		92
93 		93
94 		94
95 		95
96 		96
97 		97
98 		98
99 		99
00 		00
01 		01
02 		02
03 		03
04 		04
05 		05
06 		06
07 		07
08 		08
09 		09
10 		10
11 		11
12 		12
13 		13
14 		14
15 		15
16 		16
17 		17
18 		18
19 		19
20 		20
21 		21
22 		22 23 24 25
HIFK
Ilves
Tappara
TPS
Ässät
Jokerit
Lukko
KOOVEE
Sport
FoPS
Kiekkoreipas Hockey-Reipas Reipas Lahti Pelicans
Kärpät
SaiPa
HPK
JyP HT JYP
KalPa
KooKoo
JoKP
Kiekko-Espoo Blues Kiekko-Espoo
TuTo
Jukurit

Format

Opening match of Tampere Deck Arena: Tappara vs. Ilves in December 2021 Nokia Arenan avajaiset 2.jpg
Opening match of Tampere Deck Arena: Tappara vs. Ilves in December 2021
SM-liiga studio in the semifinals in 2006 Tamin liigastudio.jpg
SM-liiga studio in the semifinals in 2006

Regular season: All teams play 60 matches. Each match consists of 60 minutes regulation time, and in the event of a tie, the winner is decided by a three-on-three sudden death, 5-minute overtime. Ties after overtime are decided by a shootout, where each team has three shooters in the beginning. If the game is tied after three shooters, the shootout will be decided by individual shooters against one another until one scores and the other does not.

Scoring: A win in regulation time is worth three points, a win by sudden death overtime two points, a loss by sudden death overtime one point and a loss in regulation time zero points. Teams will be ranked by points, and teams tied by points are ranked by the greater number of wins in regulation.

Playoffs: The four best teams at the conclusion of regular season proceed directly to quarter-finals. Teams placing between fifth and twelfth (inclusive) will play preliminary play-offs best-out-of-five – the four winners take the last four slots to quarter-finals. All series since then are best-of-seven. Losers of the semi-finals play a bronze medal match. Teams are paired up for each round according to regular season results so that the highest-ranking team will play against the lowest-ranking, second highest against the second lowest, and so on. Higher-ranking teams get home advantage. Each playoff match consists of a 60-minute regulation time which in the event of a tie is followed by extra 20-minute periods of 5-on-5 sudden death overtime, in which the first team to score wins. [21]

Relegation: The 16th and 15th placed teams will play in the playout series to decide which team plays against the Mestis champion.

Scheduling: The regular season begins around mid-September. It takes a one-and-half-week break around the end of October to the beginning of November, when Team Finland competes in Karjala Tournament. There is a one-week Christmas break. During Winter Olympic years, a break is reserved for the Winter Olympic Games. The regular season is completed around mid-March and preliminary playoffs ensue almost immediately. The playoffs are completed by mid-April, so that all players are available for the World Championships.

Winner

The Kanada-malja Kanada-malja (Liiga) 2023.jpg
The Kanada-malja

The winners of the playoffs receive gold medals and the Kanada-malja , the championship trophy of the Liiga. [22] The winners of the regular season receive a trophy ( Harry Lindbladin muistopalkinto ) as well, [23] though it is considered less prestigious than the bronze medals of the playoffs.[ according to whom? ]

Previous winners

  • 1976 – TPS
  • 1977 – Tappara
  • 1978 – Ässät
  • 1979 – Tappara
  • 1980 – HIFK
  • 1981 – Kärpät
  • 1982 – Tappara
  • 1983 – HIFK
  • 1984 – Tappara
  • 1985 – Ilves
  • 1986 – Tappara
  • 1987 – Tappara
  • 1988 – Tappara
  • 1989 – TPS
  • 1990 – TPS
  • 1991 – TPS
  • 1992 – Jokerit
  • 1993 – TPS
  • 1994 – Jokerit
  • 1995 – TPS
  • 1996 – Jokerit
  • 1997 – Jokerit
  • 1998 – HIFK
  • 1999 – TPS
  • 2000 – TPS
  • 2001 – TPS
  • 2002 – Jokerit
  • 2003 – Tappara
  • 2004 – Kärpät
  • 2005 – Kärpät
  • 2006 – HPK
  • 2007 – Kärpät
  • 2008 – Kärpät
  • 2009 – JYP
  • 2010 – TPS
  • 2011 – HIFK
  • 2012 – JYP
  • 2013 – Ässät
  • 2014 – Kärpät
  • 2015 – Kärpät
  • 2016 – Tappara
  • 2017 – Tappara
  • 2018 – Kärpät
  • 2019 – HPK
  • 2020 – (cancelled)
  • 2021 – Lukko
  • 2022 - Tappara
  • 2023 - Tappara
  • 2024 - Tappara

All time statistical leaders

Top 10 regular-season scoring leaders

These are the top-ten regular season point-scorers in SM-liiga history. Figures are updated after each completed SM-liiga regular season.

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games Played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points

Points
PlayerPosGPGAPts
Janne Ojanen C876283516799
Arto Javanainen C688462330792
Ville Vahalahti LW977260427687
Kristian Kuusela LW1107280458738
Jari Lindroos C649230432662
Esa Keskinen C478215443658
Matti Hagman C432217432649
Risto Jalo C594275409646
Juha-Pekka Haataja RW881256326582
Raimo Helminen C751161420581

Top 10 regular-season scoring leaders (imports)

These are the top-ten regular season point-scorers for import players in SM-liiga history. Figures are updated after each completed SM-liiga regular season.

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games Played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points

Points
PlayerPosGPGAPts
Éric Perrin C643189343532
Otakar Janecký C450133346479
Aleksandr Barkov LW518135281416
Darren Boyko C476171236407
Jan Čaloun RW298145230375
Vjačeslavs Fanduļs C476148211359
Tomáš Záborský C468170182352
Allan Measures D619100238338
Shayne Toporowski RW464135185320
Stefan Öhman C419104160264

Top 10 regular-season games played (goaltender)

These are the top-ten most regular season games played by a goaltender in SM-liiga history. Figures are updated after each completed SM-liiga regular season.

Leaderboard
PlayerGP
Eero Kilpeläinen 518
Pasi Kuivalainen 517
Jukka Tammi 510
Sakari Lindfors 471
Jussi Markkanen 471
Hannu Kamppuri 460
Ari-Pekka Siekkinen 447
Mika Lehto 404
Petri Vehanen 399
Teemu Lassila 388


Trophies

The following trophies are awarded by the SM-liiga:

In 1995, the trophies were named after Finnish hockey legends. Before that, trophies were named after sponsors.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jokerit</span> Professional ice hockey club based in Helsinki, Finland

Helsingin Jokerit is a professional ice hockey team based in Helsinki, Finland, which competes in Mestis. Jokerit plays its home games at the Helsinki Ice Hall in Helsinki.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oulun Kärpät</span> Ice hockey team in Oulu

Oulun Kärpät is a Finnish professional ice hockey team based in Oulu and playing in the top-tier Finnish Liiga. Kärpät have won the Finnish championship title eight times, and is the most successful Finnish ice hockey team in the 21st century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HC Ässät Pori</span> Ice hockey club in Pori, Finland

Porin Ässät, officially named Hockey Club Ässät Pori and colloquially known as Pata, is a professional ice hockey club based in Pori, Finland. It competes in the Liiga, the highest-ranking league of ice hockey in Finland. Since 1971, Ässät has played its games in the Isomäki Ice Hall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jari Kurri Trophy</span>

The Jari Kurri Trophy is an ice hockey trophy awarded by the Finnish Liiga to the best player in the Liiga playoffs. The trophy is named after Jari Kurri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lasse Oksanen trophy</span> Ice hockey trophy awarded by the Finnish Liiga

The Lasse Oksanen trophy is an ice hockey trophy awarded by the Finnish Liiga to the best player of the season during regular season play.

The 2011–12 SM-liiga season was the 37th season of the SM-liiga, the top level of ice hockey in Finland, since the league's formation in 1975. The title was won by JYP Jyväskylä who defeated Pelicans Lahti in the finals. The title was 2nd in team history.

The 2012–13 SM-liiga season was the 38th season of the SM-liiga, the top level of ice hockey in Finland, since the league's formation in 1975. The title was won by Ässät Pori who defeated Tappara Tampere in the finals.

The 2019–20 SM-liiga season was the 45th season of the SM-liiga, the top level of ice hockey in Finland, since the league's formation in 1975. The last two game days of the regular season were scheduled to be played in front of an empty arena due to the Finnish government advising that all public events with more than 500 attendees would be cancelled or postponed. On 13 March, the rest of the season, which included the final round of the regular season and all of playoffs, was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ice hockey in Finland</span>

Ice hockey is the most popular sport in Finland in terms of television viewership and game attendance figures. It is third most popular sport in participation amongst children. As of 2020, approximately 1.3% of the Finnish population was registered with the International Ice Hockey Federation, ranking Finland second in the world for percentage of population participating in ice hockey and the highest percentage of any country outside of North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Auroraliiga</span> Finnish ice hockey league

The Auroraliiga is the national premier league for women's ice hockey in Finland. Founded by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association as the Naisten SM-sarja in 1982, it was known as the Naisten Liiga from 2017 until being rebranded as Auroraliiga in 2024. The league comprises approximately 225 players across nine teams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naisten Mestis</span> Finnish second-tier ice hockey league

Naisten Mestis is the second-highest women's national ice hockey league in Finland. Founded as the Naisten I-divisioona in 1985 by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association, when the number of teams playing in the top-tier national league was limited, the league was renamed Naisten Mestis prior to the 2012–13 season.

The 2020–21 Naisten Liiga season was the thirty-eighth season of the Naisten Liiga, Finland's elite women's ice hockey league, since the league's creation in 1982. The season began, as scheduled, on 5 September 2020, making the Naisten Liiga the first women's national ice hockey league in Europe and, quite likely, in the world to return to play for the 2020–21 season.

The 2020–21 SM-liiga season was the 46th season of the SM-liiga, the top level of ice hockey in Finland, since the league's formation in 1975. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic all the games had to be played to a very limited audience or no audience at all. Two teams have temporarily let go of their coaches due to financial reasons: JYP and SaiPa. The season was Hakametsä's last full season.

The 2021–22 Naisten Liiga season was the thirty-ninth season of the Naisten Liiga, the premier level of women's ice hockey in Finland, since the league's establishment as the Naisten SM-sarja in 1982. The season began on 11 September 2021 and concluded on 20 March 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kiekko-Espoo</span> Ice hockey club in Espoo, Finland

Kiekko-Espoo is a Finnish professional ice hockey club founded in 2018 as a continuation of the Kiekko-Espoo team originally founded in 1984. Kiekko-Espoo men's team plays in the Liiga, where they were promoted for the 2024–25 season, and the women's team plays in the Auroraliiga, where they hold the most championships of any club.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Porin Ässät (men's ice hockey)</span>

The history of the Porin Ässät starts in 1925, when Porin Palloilijat was established, even though PoPa is often considered as a separate club from Ässät.

The 2023–24 Liiga season was the 49th season of the Liiga, the top level of ice hockey in Finland, since its formation in 1975.

The 2012–13 Porin Ässät season was the club's 37th season in the SM-liiga and the 45th season at the top-level of ice hockey in Finland. Towards the end of the regular season, Ässät won 14 matches in a row and did not miss a single point during the last 16 regular season matches. Ässät finished fourth in the regular season, being only one point away from the 3rd placed JYP. The season eventually ended in Kanada-malja championship celebrations after Ässät beat Tappara Tampere in the finals. The championship was Ässät's third.

The 2013–14 Porin Ässät season was the club's 38th season in the SM-liiga and the 46th season at the top-level of ice hockey in Finland. In the previous season, Ässät had won their third Finnish championship in its history by defeating Tappara in the finals. With this, Ässät's season started at home against Lukko by raising the championship banner to the roof of the Pori Ice Hall. The season went poorly for Ässät, as the team's ranking was third last in the regular season. Only TPS and KalPa collected fewer points.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024–25 Liiga season</span> Ice hockey season

The 2024–25 Liiga season is the 50th season of the Liiga, the top level of Finnish ice hockey since 1975.

References

  1. ↑ "Finnish ice hockey league prepares for break". News. 2 December 2020. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  2. ↑ "Efterlängtade beskedet: FM-ligan i ishockey öppnas igen – kvalspel ordnas från och med våren 2025". svenska.yle.fi (in Swedish). Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  3. ↑ "Liiga aukeaa – keväästä 2025 eteenpäin pelataan karsintoja, joukkuemääräksi maksimissaan 16 joukkuetta". Jatkoaika.com - Kaikki jääkiekosta (in Finnish). 12 October 2023. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  4. ↑ Mäkeläinen, Kimmo (12 October 2023). "SM-liiga aukeaa, karsinnat pelataan taas keväällä 2025 – "Tämä palauttaa vahvasti urheilullisuuden"". Satakunnan Kansa (in Finnish). Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  5. ↑ "SM-liigan mestaruuspytyllä värikäs historia – tiesitkö tämän Kanada-maljasta?". mtvuutiset.fi (in Finnish). 26 April 2016. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  6. ↑ emiliarantanen (1 July 2021). "Rautakanslerin arvot menivät uusiksi". Uusi Tie -verkkolehti (in Finnish). Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  7. ↑ "Jääkiekon SM-sarja ja SM-liiga vuosi vuodelta". Suomi-kiekon ennätykset ja tilastot (in Finnish). Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  8. ↑ "KalPa nousi jääkiekkoliigaan". Yle Urheilu (in Finnish). 13 April 2005. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  9. ↑ "jääkiekkoilu | SM-liigaan karsinnat keväällä 2009". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). 20 June 2007. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  10. ↑ "Jääkiekon SM-liigakarsinnat pelataan keväällä 2009". Yle Urheilu (in Finnish). 19 June 2007. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  11. ↑ "Liigakarsinnat lopetetaan - Mestis-mestari anoo jatkossa nousua". Yle Urheilu (in Finnish). 19 December 2013. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  12. ↑ "Kun urheilullisuus poljettiin lopullisesti – pakina surullisesta liigakaudesta 2013-2014". Yle Urheilu (in Finnish). 23 January 2014. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  13. ↑ "SM-liiga muuttaa nimeään". mtvuutiset.fi (in Finnish). 9 August 2013. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  14. ↑ "SM-liiga vaihtaa nimensä Liigaksi". Jatkoaika.com - Kaikki jääkiekosta (in Finnish). 9 August 2013. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  15. ↑ "Tässä on SM-liigan uusi logo - Katso kuva". www.iltalehti.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  16. ↑ Hoffrén, Sami (13 March 2020). "SM-liigakausi päättyy välittömästi – mestaruutta ei jaeta". Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  17. ↑ "Kiekko-Espoo pääsee SM-liigaan!". www.iltalehti.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  18. ↑ "SM-liigan pudotuspelit uudistuvat ja lajiväki kyseenalaistaa urheilulliset perusteet: "Tuntuu epäreilulta"". Yle Urheilu (in Finnish). 3 May 2024. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  19. ↑ Helfrick, Eugene (3 July 2023). "Top 10 Best Ice Hockey Leagues". The Hockey Writers. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  20. ↑ "Rankings". www.championshockeyleague.com. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  21. ↑ "Liigan pudotuspelit romutetaan – Tässä ovat muutokset". www.iltalehti.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  22. ↑ "SM-liigan mestaruuspytyllä värikäs historia – tiesitkö tämän Kanada-maljasta?". mtvuutiset.fi (in Finnish). 26 April 2016. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
  23. ↑ Touru, Ville (10 March 2023). "SM-liigassa illalla huima taisto, rahapalkinto vedetty pois – molempien kapteenit sivuun!". Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 8 September 2024.
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