First coach of the Finnish men’s national ice hockey team Jukka Jalonen is missing from the Lions’ bench when next week 9.-12. the Swedish EHT tournament will be played in February.
According to Jalonen, who is rehabilitating himself after knee surgery, things are done in Zurich and Malmö without his presence.
– I have been coaching for more than 30 years, and now is the first time that I am not able to join the team when I am either sick or recovering. Mikko Manner takes the screen of my responsible coach and plays the attackers, and the video coach Janne Hietaniemi comes to the exchange box instead of “Mamba”. They are both responsible for superiority, which is usually Manner’s handiwork, Jalonen instructs.
– I believe that this “cleverness” only motivates the boys more. Interesting to see how I keep a cool head on the sofa at home when my own team is playing, smiles Jalone from the distance.
Jalonen selected six first-timers for the A national team. Goalkeepers were able to join from the SM league Juha Jatkola (KalPa), defenders Valtteri Pulli (TPS) and Nikolas Matipalo (Aces) and attackers Juha Jääskä (HIFK) and Julius Mattila (Lock). A striker was qualified from the ranks of Växjö, the league runner-up of the Swedish SHL Kalle Kossila.
– The team is good again, and when there are new players, of course it would be nice to see them in the everyday as well. I get information from the coaching and management team about how the players have performed. Now you just have to ask more. I see the players’ highlights from the game on TV, the rest of the monitoring is left to the shoulders of others, Jalonen states.
Jalonen is happy with the current appearance of the SM league
Jalonen is satisfied and at the same time happy for the SM league, as the public has recently found a good place for fans and the battle for the playoff spots is fierce.
– I have liked the current situation in the SM league better than perhaps many others. I look at it from the perspective of the product, the players and the game. It was already very good at the beginning of autumn, and now the audience has noticed it too. What’s better than that!
– I believe that there will be a great spring in the League and a fight for the playoffs places. They are turning out to be great shards. There are many teams that are fighting for the championship until the very end. Nobody knows yet who is the clear favorite, because now there are many clubs that can take the “boy” home if they get all the pieces to fall into place, Jalonen says.
In the Swedish tournament, the Lions have 12 players who have participated in either of the previous EHT tournaments of the season. Reflecting on this season, there are 15 new players, six of whom are completely yellow-faced players.
– Good, new and youthful debutantes. If you can succeed in the SM league, you can also succeed at the EHT level. It has been noticed during the first two tournaments.
A lot of traveling
The Lions will face Switzerland next Thursday in Zurich and then travel to Sweden. In Malmö, the Czech Republic will face off first, and the host country’s crown jerseys the very next day.
This season, the national ice hockey team has won only two matches out of six EHT matches.
According to Jalonen, the optimal situation would be for the games to be played in the same place from start to finish. However, the tournament is so short that traveling with the success coach is not of great importance.
– On Monday evening we go to Switzerland and stay there until Friday. Although this is a Swedish tournament, we are more in Switzerland. It might affect the physical side a little, but you won’t have time to get tired or sleepy here. On the mental side, you can catch the difference on the other hand, says Jalonen.
According to Jalonen’s enthusiasm, five goalkeepers and 64 outfield players have been mapped out of the Finns playing in Europe after the February tournament.
– Then we have updated which of the players are relevant for the home World Cup tournament.
NHL observation trip in March
In March Jalonen, GM Jere Lehtinen and possibly a coach Ari-Pekka Selin are going on an almost two-week-long trip to observe NHL players behind the ice.
– Success in value tournaments requires that at least a few of our best players have come from the NHL, Jalonen reminds.
– The program for North America is still a little bit open. Now let’s see, in a way, how the Series table “lives” there. We have to decide who we definitely want to see and who are potential competition candidates. We see a lot of games and players, just like we always have.
In April, Finland will start the World Cup camp and will then play doubles matches against Norway, Denmark and Sweden. At the beginning of May, the EHT season will be put into the package in the Czech Republic, just a little before the World Cup tournament starting on May 12.
The Finnish men’s national ice hockey team is defending the World Cup gold from last spring’s home games in the World Championships in Tampere and Riga.
Lions for the Swedish EHT tournament 9.–12.02.2023:
Goalkeepers:
31 Jatkola Juha, KalPa Kuopio
32 Larmi Emil, Växjö Lakers HC, SHL
Defenders:
2 Rissanen Rasmus, Örebro HK, SHL
3 Pulli Valtteri, TPS Turku
13 Kemiläinen Valtteri, Tappara Tampere
18 Saarijärvi Vili, SCL Tigers, NLA
33 Matinpalo Nikolas, Aces Pori
36 Eronen Elmeri, Timrå IK, SHL
38 Riikola Juuso, IK Oskarshamn, SHL
40 Lindbohm Petteri, Frölunda HC, SHL
52 Pelli Arttu, HPK Hämeenlinna
80 Niku Sami, JYP Jyväskylä
Attackers:
19 Savinainen Veli-Matti, Tappara Tampere
20 Ojamäki Niko, Tappara Tampere
21 Innala Jere, Frölunda HC, SHL
22 Swedish Arttu, EHC Kloten, NLA
23 Mattila Julius, Lukko Rauma
25 Ikonen Joona, Ilves Tampere
27 Janne Kuokkanen, HC Fribourg-Gottéron, NLA
28 Tikka Tommi, Ilves Tampere
29 Oksanen Ahti, IK Oskarshamn, SHL
50 Aaltonen Juhamatti, Jukurit Mikkeli
51 Jääskä Juha, HIFK Helsinki
62 Leino Robert, Örebro HK, SHL
71 Kossila Kalle, Växjö Lakers HC, SHL
74 Suomela Antti, IK Oskarshamn, SHL
76 Sallinen Jere, EHC Biel, NLA
Lions matches:
Thu 9.2.
Switzerland – Finland at 21:15
Sat 11.2.
Finland – Czech Republic at 1 p.m
Sun 12.2.
Sweden – Finland at 5 p.m