How did Pelicans become the sensation of the SM league season? The head coach was able to laugh at the experts’ pessimism: “Is it a trick?”

The quarterfinals of the SM league start on Friday 17.3. with matches Pelicans–KalPa and Tappara–KooKoo. Puheen Ice Hockey Tour at 18:15. From now on, the ice hockey round will be present at all spring playoff games.

Lahti Pelicans took fourth place in the regular season of the SM league and home advantage to the quarter-finals. The regular season ranking is the best for the Lahti team since third place in the 2018–19 season.

Before the start of the season, the Pelicans were widely ruled out of the playoffs. For example When betting on an extension (you switch to another service) puck editors rated the Pelicans 11th on Average.

‘s hockey expert Topi Nättinen too predicted that the Pelicans’ acquisitions had remained thin, and the expert did not believe that 5-8 youngsters would suddenly play the season of their lives.

Pelicans’ player budget was said to be 2.3 million euros. Kärpät, HIFK, TPS and JYP were left behind in the regular season among those operating with a tighter player budget. The winner of the regular season, Tappara, Ilves and Lukko managed to advance.

Pelicans head coach Tommi Niemelä smiles understandably at season previews when asked how the trick was done.

– I don’t know if it’s actually a trick. We have approached the season in a different way than we had previously planned.

Before the start of the season, the Pelicans were worried about the team’s inexperience and the fact that the team was assembled – at least publicly – quite late.

Niemelä flatly denies the late gathering of the team. He stated that it was just a matter of when the club announced their players.

Niemelä, 39, is considered a coach who masters the creation of a positive learning atmosphere. The head coach, who piloted the Lahti players from the 2020–21 season, is happy that in the Pelicans’ organization every player dares to openly be himself.

– The players have been tremendously committed to our common way of working from day one. It has grown into a really positive snowball. The working atmosphere has been excellent and has given the guys the opportunity to throw themselves into the path of development with an open mind.

The Pelicans locker room definitely has a “really cool feeling”

Although there were plenty of doubters before the season, seven of Pelicans’ young players with more than 15 power points set their point record, expert Nättinen calculated. It says that the team has been playing at the upper limits all along.

According to Nättinen, “there is nothing incredibly wonderful” about the Pelicans playing, but it is open-minded.

– It’s really fresh. Players are given permission to play. We try to play with the puck, sometimes even a little too boldly. Playing puck control is, for example, a really ambitious goal in Pelicans’ home rink, which is the smallest rink in the SM league.

The successes have fueled a courageous atmosphere. Nättinen believes that there has been a “really cool feeling” in the Pelicans dressing room.

– Add to that Tommi Niemelä’s sometimes even overwhelmingly positive and humane leadership. It’s a pretty good package on the mental side.

This does not mean that the Pelicans do not have a really high level of demand. Nättinen believes that Niemelä is a genuine person, so he will certainly be listened to even when there is something tougher to say.

Niemelä knows the young players from Lahti very well. For years, he served as the pilot of Pelicans’ U16 and U18 teams before a two-year gig in Lausanne.

Of course, with the atmosphere alone, the Pelicans would not have reached the fourth place in the regular season.

– Niemelä is not only an atmosphere coach, but the structures of the game are in order. Not many people would have the first thought that this is a really skilled and talented group, Nättinen reflects.

– I think this is one of the best examples of how coaching has been able to combine the advancement of players and team play. Of course, thanks to the club management as well, for the kind of players they have managed to acquire.

The emergence of young Lahti residents and a strong goalkeeper tandem

The Pelicans’ best scorer in the regular season was a 25-year-old Czech talent Lukas Jasek. However, he too was only in 20th place in the regular season points market with 18+21=39. Still, the Pelicans scored 166 goals in the regular season, the fourth most.

Despite the doubts, many young players like the Pelicans brought up Aatu Jämsenshowed big leaps in development during the season.

– “Ape” has been excellent especially since the end of the season. He has been an exceptional talent for a long time in terms of his skills. There has been a lot more that is required in elite sports, which has not yet been at that level. He has taken great steps as a top athlete in everyday life, Niemelä shines and highlights his own upbringing as well as a center Leevi Tukiainen23, center by Elias Vilén22, as well as the defender Topias Vilén19.

In addition, Niemelä wants to mention the 22-year-old defender who won the U18 and U20 World Cup gold in his career and moved from Tappara to Pelicans last season Toni Utusen. The 22-year-old Utunen recorded +22 in the power statistic in the regular season, which was the fourth best reading of the entire series.

The Pelicans conceded 136 goals in the regular season, the third fewest.

Before the start of the season, the goalkeeper also spoke Patrik Bartos too the quirks of civilian life. Czech site iSport.cz told in the summer (you switch to another service), that Bartosak’s father had informed the police that his son had been abused. Before Bartosak found a new start for his career in Lahti in 2020, he had, among other things, been involved in a drunk driving accident in the Czech Republic.

However, in the regular season, the 29-year-old Bartosak made excellent saves with an average of 2.05 goals conceded (sixth best in the league) and received strong support from the 22-year-old lazy Lahti Jasper from Patrikainen (2.26).

Niemelä remains silent about Nurminen’s role

Niemelä’s contract still covers the 2023–24 season.

Has the success brought a lot of courtships from elsewhere?

– I don’t need to comment on it in any way. Next year is the contract left, it’s the fourth year of this project, all the bangs are there.

As an organization, Pelicans has also been strongly personified by the goalie legend Pasi Nurminen. Nurminen is the main owner of Pelicans.

In the fall of 2019, Nurminen retired from coaching and later told about his work burnout.

In the winter of 2021, Nurminen received a suspended prison sentence and fines for endangering traffic safety and gross drunk driving. The reason was the events of autumn 2020, due to which Nurminen was moved aside from the duties of the chairman and CEO of Pelicans. In autumn 2021, Nurminen returned to the Pelicans board.

Last fall Ilta-Sanomat told (you will switch to another service)that according to insider sources, Nurminen will once again exercise great decision-making power in the Pelicans.

Pelicans head coach Niemelä did not want to comment on whether Nurminen is somehow involved in the team’s activities and what kind of support he will receive.

– I don’t need to comment on any of our background issues. We focus on sports. I can say that all the people who are in the Pelicans organization in Lahti work together to ensure that the entire community grows and develops.

KalPa is the second big surprise of the season

In the semifinals, Pelicans will face another positive sensation team of the SM league season, KalPa, who finished fifth in the regular season.

KalPa was only ranked 13th in the aforementioned Jatkoaja season prediction. Last season, the team finished 11th in the regular season.

Why was KalPa successful in the regular season, head coach Tommi Miettinen?

– Good continuity both in terms of coaching and player material. Lots of players who have been at KalPa for several years. Unwavering faith in what we were doing last year and have been doing for several years already, it carries. We have been on the right track.

Miettinen, 47, took the helm of KalPa in the middle of the 2019–20 season. He emphasized before the start of the playoff games that Kuopio has a huge hunger for success.

– It is time for our organization to step forward.

The quarterfinals of the SM league start on Friday 17.3. with matches Pelicans–KalPa and Tappara–KooKoo. Puheen Ice Hockey Tour at 18:15. From now on, the ice hockey round will be present at all spring playoff games.