The Jokers’ new head coach, Risto Dufva, has a history of coaching experienced teams. In the Mestis team, a new kind of challenge is coming.
11:12•Updated 11:13
Jokerit, who plays in ice hockey’s Mestis, announced the surprising news in the morning. Experienced Risto Dufva is the new head coach of the team from Helsinki.
Served as head coach before Dufva Tero Määtt managed to be at the helm for only one match this season. The Jokerit lost their opening game to Kiekko-Vantaa 3–5.
Urheilu’s ice hockey expert Top Nättinen don’t think one game would have any effect on that exchange. Määttä continues in coaching in the role of assistant coach.
Nättinen sees that the Jokerit would have changed their coach sooner or later. In the SM league, the league qualifiers are played for a long time in the spring, where the weakest group of the SM league and the winner of Mesti meet.
– The timing is interesting. This is the kind of news that neither I nor many others could have expected. However, Jokerit wants to move up to the SM league. This is a clear signal that you want to turn all the stones and want a certain direction.
– More thought has been given to the big picture. I bet the same thing could have happened a month earlier or two months later. It could have also not happened, Nättinen refers to changing the coach.
Not just Dufva
So Määtä will continue in the coaching team, which says that he is trusted. A lot depends on what kind of role Dufva plays as head coach.
– Is he more of an outward-looking type who does large-scale work? Other coaches may take care of the day-to-day work and Dufva is more in the direction of the press. The role of Määtä has certainly been discussed. Of course, it is not optimal for the coach to change in this situation.
Dufva is known as a coach who has relied on a lot of experienced players. 40 years old Valtteri Filppula is a clear trend setter, whose experience is also represented by those who have also played in Leijon Otto Karvinen and more than ten years ago played in the Jokerei SM league team Teemu Henritius.
Otherwise, the Mestis frame of the Jokers is very young. Nättinen thinks it will be interesting to see how Dufva adapts to the new situation.
– When you look at Dufva’s history, usually the teams he has coached have been the most experienced in the SM League. The point of convergence here is that this team is a relative experienced team to Mesti. There are more players who have played in the SM league and who have liked Mesti, even though the age distribution is young.
Nättinen believes that this is why, for example, they wanted to keep Tero Määt in the coaching circle.
– They will certainly continue to work with young players. Through Dufva, we are trying to get additional help for winning, league promotion and possibly marketing and player marketing as well.
– This is a certain kind of risk, but I still see more opportunities here, because the other coaches were left there and not just Risto Dufva and his own guys were brought in, Nättinen says.