According to the league clubs that responded to the Sport survey, the Jokers can return to the Finnish Championship, but not without certain conditions being met. For example, jokers cannot be played in a hall with Russian ownership in the background.
Sakari Lund,
Ann-Christine Karhu,
Sam Such
None of the clubs in the Finnish Hockey League will oppose the return of the Jokers to the main series. Sports asked the CEOs of all league clubs.
The Jokers confirmed they were leaving the KHL league yesterday, but have not yet spoken about their plans for the future.
The graphics below show how the clubs’ responses were distributed. No club knocked out the return of the Jokers. The condition of the clubs that answered in the affirmative is that there must be no Russian ownership behind the Jokers.
The clubs generally welcomed the Jokers into the league. None of the clubs was ready to take the Jokers back unconditionally. For example, the Helsinki Club cannot play the Finnish Championship League in a hall with a Russian background.
Helsinki has been missing local matches since the Joker left KHL.
– I don’t know what is welcome, but the Jokerit is a traditional Finnish hockey club and another company would be needed in the Helsinki metropolitan area. That’s fine, HIFK’s CEO Jukka Valtanen designed by.
Of the clubs, HPK, Ilves, Tappara, JYP and KalPa did not take a direct position on the issue, but even these clubs did not directly oppose the possible return of the Jokers.
– Jokers is an interesting brand in Finnish hockey. It has a strong junior job. If the holdings in the Jokers are restored to that condition, I see the return as a possible discussion, HPK’s CEO Antti Toivanen said.
“Jokers are welcome when you meet the criteria”
The message from the league clubs was clear: The return of the Jokers can be considered if the backgrounds are in order.
– On our behalf, the Jokerit is welcome after the backgrounds have been clarified, there is no Russian ownership and the ownership base is different anyway. The conditions must be the same as for all other league clubs, Jukuri CEO Antti Laakso stated.
– I do not see that the Flies would settle in cross-section if the Jokers have the right ownership base and the current affairs and obligations have been taken care of, Kärppi’s CEO Tommi Virkkunen said.
CEO of TPS Kai Koskinen also justified its positive position on the grounds that the Jokers would bring more interest to the league. SaiPa’s CEO was on the same lines Jussi Markkanen.
– Jokers are welcome on our behalf when you meet the criteria. The jokers have a big support base and would certainly increase the series’ interest, Markkanen said.
Sports also asked if the number of teams in the league could be 16 instead of the current 15. Many CEOs pointed out that an even number would be even better than the current situation.