Next season, 16 teams will play in the Ice Hockey Championship League, of which only two will end their season directly in the regular season.
13:25•Updated 13:43
The Finnish Ice Hockey Championship League announced on Thursday that the series’ playoffs will be renewed for next season. Next spring, 12 teams will be able to participate in the finals instead of the former ten.
The four best teams in the regular season advance directly to the quarter-finals, while the teams ranked 5-12 decide between themselves the other four quarter-round spots. Three wins are required to advance from the opening round of the playoffs.
Starting from the quarter-finals, the familiar formula is played, where four wins (best of seven) are required to advance.
16 teams will play in the SM league next season, when Kiekko-Espoo will be promoted to the series. The last two teams of the regular season meet each other in a series of matches, the loser of which has to be eliminated from their league place against the winner of Mestis.
Even if the Mestis team wins the qualifier against the league team, it must meet the license criteria of the SM League, otherwise the league club can continue in the league.
Only the teams that finished 13th and 14th will end their season in the regular season.
The news is updated…