– Normal rules, normal rules.
The head coach Olli Jokinen a sharp command starts the morning exercise of the Jukurites. The players press with good intensity in the small game with three against three.
The fight is on tap in Jukurei right in the morning at 10:45.
The head coach does not have to interfere in any way in the course of the small game, but for Jukurie’s players this is business as usual, everyday basic oats.
Everything shows that the players are physically and mentally present right away in the handshake. This is exactly what Olli Jokinen’s most important requirement is for his guards in everything he does in everyday life.
– Everyone understands that every practice and every game means a lot to this team. Finding the charge for each daily practice requires a lot from an individual mentally, and these players have been able to find that, Jokinen praises.
Jukurien’s momentum in the SM league during the heart winter is on point. The scoring average per match (1.71) is at a good level, and the scoring efficiency is also at the top of the league. In the league table, Jukurit is fifth.
These statistics are not currently at the top of the head coach’s board.
– In my opinion, as a coach, what warms me the most is how motivated players we have in the team.
– Everyone understands that this season everything has to be done more carefully and better than ever before. The fact that we missed the playoffs by one point last spring, emphasizes Olli Jokinen.
The team also has a clear result goal: to get to the playoffs with home advantage.
Development of players, development of individuals
The hiring of Olli Jokinen as the head coach of Jukurei in the winter of 2021 really shook the puck crowd.
Doubts about the coaching abilities of “American Olli” were waiting until the 2021-2022 season finally started. The doubters were silenced once and for all, when Jukurit sensationally fell just one win away from winning the entire SM league regular season two years ago.
– I was fully aware of my own abilities as a coach when I came here. I didn’t come here to Mikkeli with my jacket open or with a blank slate to come up with something in my head, but with a clear plan. I had been managing the academy training of young players in the USA for years and transferred those lessons here to Finland, he explains.
Last season, the team’s performance dropped, but for this season, the train has been put back on track.
Head coach Jokinen announced right after coming to Mikkeli that only through the development of players and the development of individuals, even a club with small resources like Jukurei can challenge anyone in the SM league.
Jokinen’s vision has certainly been covered over the course of three seasons.
In player development, physical training is at the center of everything.
– Our principle is that ice practice in Jukurei is harder than the game itself, i.e. a lot of skating and a lot of fighting, the head coach elaborates.
Joki’s strategy can also be turned into a numerical fact.
– If a player skates three kilometers in a match, then in our training the player skates 7–8 kilometers every day.
The head coach has commendably led young players in their twenties forward in their careers during three seasons. For example, edgy Niko Huuhtanen has risen to the forefront of the league’s hot attackers under Jokinen’s guidance.
– Olli really demands a lot from our young players, but he gives us an opportunity that grows young players. The end is up to you, but nothing comes for free, Huuhtanen points out.
A door closes, a new door opens
Olli Jokinen’s three-year project as Jukurei’s head coach will surely end after the last match of the spring. Jokinen has already left his permanent wooden mark in Jukurie’s club history.
– I believe that we have created sports credibility for Jukurei. I don’t think anyone has had to judge during these seasons whether Jukurit belongs to the SM league or not, Jokinen says.
Jokinen hopes that he has stayed to create his own game identity for Jukurei, which would still be visible in the club ten years from now.
– Of course, new coaches always bring their own spices to the league team’s play. As I understand it, the club management appreciates the way in which Jukurit has played in our time and wants to stick to it in the future, he continues.
Jukurei’s club management also emphasizes continuity after Jokinen’s era.
– The future of Jukurie looks good, because we have created an everyday life here that supports the development of the players and the game. Future coaches will continue the same with their own spices, development manager Mikko Hakkarainen line.
After the spring, Olli Joki will open a new door as a coach. The address is still open. The man’s goal as a coach is in the NHL.
– I want to be there right away in a big role as a coach. I want to aim for head coaching in the NHL, of course there are many steps before that, says Jokinen bluntly.
Jokinen, a veteran of more than 1,200 NHL games and who has risen to the forefront of SM league coaches, still does not set out to pursue his big coaching goal with his jacket open.
– If you have a strong playing career in the NHL, then you have an advantage for coaching opportunities there. I have a lot of learning ahead of me as a coach before I start thinking about options in the NHL.
This week, Jukurit will face Luko on Thursday and Sport on Saturday.
The Ice Hockey Championship League is followed on the Ice Hockey Tour in Areena on Friday (from 6 pm) and Saturday (from 4 pm). You can find broadcasts of the ice hockey round at this link.