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"Unto Wiitala" trophy | |
---|---|
Awarded for | Best referee of the season in ice hockey |
Country | Finland |
Presented by | Liiga |
The Unto Wiitala trophy is an ice-hockey award given by the Finnish Liiga to the best referee of the season. It is named after Unto Wiitala a Finnish goalkeeper who competed in the 1950s and became a referee after his playing career.
Ice hockey is a contact team sport played on ice, usually in a rink, in which two teams of skaters use their sticks to shoot a vulcanized rubber puck into their opponent's net to score points. The sport is known to be fast-paced and physical, with teams usually consisting of six players each: one goaltender, and five players who skate up and down the ice trying to take the puck and score a goal against the opposing team.
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a country in Northern Europe bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, between Norway to the north, Sweden to the northwest, and Russia to the east. Finland is a Nordic country and is situated in the geographical region of Fennoscandia. The capital and largest city is Helsinki. Other major cities are Espoo, Vantaa, Tampere, Oulu and Turku.
The SM-liiga, colloquially called the Finnish Elite League in English, is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. It is one of the six founding leagues of the Champions Hockey League and currently allocated five spots - the maximum number - based on success in previous editions. It was created in 1975 to replace the SM-sarja, which was fundamentally an amateur league. The SM-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 championship".
Season | Winner |
---|---|
1967–68 | Sakari Sillankorva |
1968–69 | Sakari Sillankorva |
1969–70 | Sakari Sillankorva |
1970–71 | Pentti Isotalo |
1971–72 | Unto Wiitala |
1972–73 | Unto Wiitala |
1973–74 | Unto Wiitala |
1974–75 | Unto Wiitala |
1975–76 | Raimo Sepponen |
1976–77 | Raimo Sepponen |
1977–78 | Karl-Gustav Kaisla |
1978–79 | Pertti Juhola |
1979–80 | Karl-Gustav Kaisla |
1980–81 | Antti Koskinen |
1981–82 | Raimo Sepponen |
1982–83 | Seppo Mäkelä |
1983–84 | Seppo Mäkelä |
1984–85 | Pertti Juhola |
1985–86 | Antti Koskinen |
1986–87 | Pertti Juhola |
1987–88 | Seppo Mäkelä |
1988–89 | Seppo Mäkelä |
1989–90 | Karl-Gustav Kaisla |
1990–91 | Antti Koskinen |
1991–92 | Seppo Mäkelä |
1992–93 | Seppo Mäkelä |
1993–94 | Kari Nieminen |
1994–95 | Rami Savolainen |
1995–96 | Seppo Mäkelä |
1996–97 | Seppo Mäkelä |
1997–98 | Seppo Mäkelä |
1998–99 | Pekka Haajanen |
1999–00 | Marko Lepaus |
2000–01 | Markku Kruus |
2001–02 | Markku Kruus |
2002–03 | Jari Levonen |
2003–04 | Timo Favorin |
2004–05 | Jari Levonen |
2005–06 | Markku Kruus |
2006–07 | Timo Favorin |
2007–08 | Timo Favorin |
2008–09 | Jari Levonen |
2009–10 | Jari Levonen |
2010–11 | Jari Levonen Antti Boman |
2011–12 | Jari Levonen |
2012–13 | Aleksi Rantala |
2013–14 | Jari Levonen Jukka Hakkarainen |
2014–15 | Stefan Fonselius |
2015–16 | Stefan Fonselius |
2016–17 | Timo Favorin |
2017–18 | Aleksi Rantala |
2018–19 | Stefan Fonselius |
Raimo Ilmari Helminen is a Finnish former professional ice hockey player. He is often called "Raipe" or "Maestro" by his fans. He is the world record holder for most international games played by a hockey player, as well as for tied for being the hockey player in the most Olympic Games, and his 26 seasons as a professional is one of the longest careers in professional hockey history. He is currently an assistant coach of Jokerit of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
JYP is an ice hockey team playing in the Finnish top division Liiga. They play in Jyväskylä, Finland, at the LähiTapiola Areena.
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 have been one of the most successful Finnish ice hockey teams in the 2000s and 2010s.
Sport, known by its full name as Hockey Team Vaasan Sport OY, is a Finnish ice hockey team playing in Liiga, and is based at Vaasa Arena in Vaasa. The team was established in 1939 as IF Sport.
The Kalevan Pallo (KalPa) is a professional ice hockey team which competes in the Finnish Liiga. They play in Kuopio, Finland at the Data Group Areena.
The Raimo Kilpiö trophy is an ice hockey trophy awarded by the Finnish Liiga to the player who has shown the most sportsmanship and good behaviour as well as high quality performance for their team. It is named after Raimo Kilpiö who played in the top level of Finnish ice hockey for 21 years in 1953-77. In 2019 it was awarded to Kristian Kuusela of Tappara.
Mestis, is the second-highest ice hockey league in Finland.
Mauri Unto Wiitala was a Finnish professional ice hockey player who played in the SM-liiga. Born in Kuolemajärvi, Finland, he played for Hämeenlinnan Tarmo before working as a referee and hockey executive. He competed at the 1952 Winter Olympics with Team Finland and five Ice Hockey World Championships.
Simo Olavi Saarinen is a retired professional ice hockey defenceman
Karl-Gustav Kaisla was a Finnish ice hockey referee. He officiated in three World Championships and in one Olympic Tournament.
HIFK is a professional ice hockey team based in Helsinki, Finland that plays in the Liiga, the sport's top-level league in Finland. The team plays at Helsinki Ice Hall. It was founded in 1897. Since then, HIFK has won the Finnish national championship seven times. HIFK has the highest number of audience in the Liiga and is one of the wealthiest sports clubs in Finland.
Jyri-Petteri Rönn is a Finnish ice hockey referee, who referees in the SM-liiga and Kontinental Hockey League. He is a real estate agent by profession.
Unto may refer to:
The Lahti Pelicans are a Finnish professional ice hockey team playing in the Liiga. Founded in 1996, they play in the city of Lahti at Isku Arena. The team is partly owned by former National Hockey League (NHL) goaltender Pasi Nurminen.
The 2014 Naisten Liiga, part of the 2014 Finnish football season, was the 8th season of Naisten Liiga since its establishment in 2007. The season started on 22 March 2014 and ended on 18 October 2014. Åland United were the defending champions, having won their 2nd Finnish championship in 2013.
The 2007 Naisten Liiga, part of the 2007 Finnish football season, was the first season of the 2006 established Naisten Liiga. FC Honka were the defending Finnish champions, having won the 2006 Naisten SM-sarja season.
The 2008 Naisten Liiga, part of the 2008 Finnish football season, was the second season of the 2006 established Naisten Liiga. FC Honka were the defending champions, having won the 2007 season. SC Raisio withdrew from the league and was replaced by TPS Turku.
The 2017–18 Liiga season was the 43rd season of the SM-liiga, the top level of ice hockey in Finland, since the league's formation in 1975. Tappara was the season as a defending champion. This season included a record number of matches played on Fridays and Saturdays. In autumn, there was a national team break from 5 November until 13 November.
The 2018–19 Liiga season was the 44th season of the Liiga, the top level of ice hockey in Finland, since the league's formation in 1975.