The Ice Hockey World Cup will be played in the Czech Republic from 10 to 26. May. follows events in the app, website, Sports Screen and Sports Radio.
If the expectations for the Lions at the home games were low, Finland will go to the World Cup starting on Friday in the Czech Republic as a big contender.
Finland has only four NHL players in the games, in addition to Europe’s toughest stars, such as Sakari Manninen and Teemu Hartikainenare sidelined from the team.
The team is also running out of familiar leadership, having once solved the World Cup problems Marko “Mörkö” Anttila left the national team last spring. Leijon now has a lot more anonymous players for the general public.
– The goal-scoring power now falls on the shoulders of the entire team. We see new morons. Of course, it would be nice if Mörkö took the title Jesse Puljujärvi Sports expert Ismo Lehkonen says.
NHL players Mikael Granlund is the team’s number one star and a credit horse in defense Olli Määttä. The team’s fourth NHL player has scored 20 points in Pittsburgh Valtteri Puustinen.
A huge operation behind
Puljujärvi is one of the team’s most interesting names. The forward, who was looking for a place in the NHL, underwent massive hip surgery last summer and returned to the rink in January.
Although Lehkonen already planned to refer Mörö to Puljujärvi, he does not want to put the burden of Finland’s success on the shoulders of the 26-year-old. However, the expert raises his hat to how Puljujärvi has returned to the rink after the surgery.
– When such a huge operation was performed, he first learned to walk. That too brought difficulties. Moving onto the ice is completely unnatural, since we weren’t created to skate, says Lehkonen.
According to Lehkonen, Puljujärvi’s expression shows how happy the forward is right now after reaching the national team and a few NHL games.
– I dare to say that Puljujärvi improves from time to time. It would be great to have an ending to this story where he starts swinging the cage. But that would be a bonus. Let’s let him enjoy playing.
Lions as underdogs
Finland has an unnamed team, but the fiercest competitors have huge bunches of NHL stars. The NHL’s return to the Olympics in 2026 has brought the biggest stars from the United States, Canada and Sweden to participate in the games.
– Finland is a serious underdog, but that always suits us, Lehkonen enthuses.
The Finnish team has already been compared to the 2019 World Championship team, which included only two NHL players.
– Finland can take advantage of the fact that then we managed with an anonymous team. Finland also has a lot of hungry people and young people who want to go to the next level. This is a great display place for them.
It’s really great for Lehkonen that Granlund accepted the challenge and went to lead the team. By the way, there are very inexperienced players in the mid lane, because Oliver Kapanen, Arttu Hyry and Konsta Helenius are playing at the World Cup level for the first time.
Lehkonen brings it up Juha Jääskän and Iiro Pakarinen the importance of players like
– They play a very big role because they have to stop NHL-level hard scorers who score more than 100 points in a season. They have to be glued Hannes Björninen with high fives for pimento.
However, Lehkonen appreciates Jalonen’s style of giving credit to younger players.
– I appreciate that when Jukka goes to the last dance, he thinks about what kind of legacy he will leave to the team. We are rapidly approaching a generational change. Because of that, he has taken first-timers and young people to the team.
America brings entertainment
The USA, Canada and Sweden are the biggest early favorites for the Games. Finland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland are among the contenders. Lehkonen says that especially from the United States, entertaining puck will be seen in the Czech Republic.
– The USA has its own junior program, which almost all the guys have gone through. They play their own kind of speed hockey. They attack, attack and attack, and if there is power left, they defend. It’s a fun team for entertainment value.
It is also interesting what tactics the Swedish head coach will use Sam Hallam playing tricks on his team. At least there are enough stars, because there are NHL stars available for the first defense pair Victor Hedman and Erik Karlsson.
– Will Hallam still play the scorched earth tactic or will they start playing like they did in Växjö in the past, that is, playing hard, defending forward and attacking with four, even five, all the way to the bottom?
– However, one should not forget the black horses. Above all, the Czechs have a tough time in their home games. Only a gold medal is good for them.
Familiar gameplay
The Lions, whose game has been in great shape this year, create their own spice. Finland has played 12 matches since February and lost only once. The goal difference is 34–19.
The Lions of Jalonen have tweaked their defensive game to peak condition on the eve of the World Cup. According to Lehkonen, the way the lions play is still a challenge for the opponents, although it is known to the countries.
– Very many teams have not wanted to accept that you have to play against a certain style, Lehkonen sees.
– Very often it has happened that the other side has started to push and open their own deck. Finland has had good superiority situations from either direct attacks or end games.
The lions have also excelled with their undiscipline. It has taken very little ice. According to Lehkonen, the opponent, on the other hand, has sometimes fallen into temper tantrums when frustrated with Finland’s way of playing.
– Ylivoima has produced results and Alivoima has been Jalonen’s cornerstone for many years. There are good underpowered players who are willing to sacrifice their own health so that the keeper can fend off easy pucks.
To top it all off, Leijoni’s players know Jalonen’s way of playing like in their dreams, Lehkonen describes.
– The whole team can go to the games with a pretty good and relaxed feeling to measure their own level.
The graphic below shows the World Cup match schedule.