Jere Härkälä, who was Ässie’s head coach in the past season, was relieved of his duties today at the end of a poorly run season.
CEO of Aces Mikael Lehtinen hopes that the new head coach Jarno Pikkarainen could join the Pori team next season. Pikkarainen was hired for the position with a two-year contract
Jere Härkälän firings is a step towards the playoffs next season, Lehtinen predicts in the press release.
– The change is made to support our goal of being among the top eight in the league every year.
In the current season, Ässät finished eleventh and missed the playoffs.
– We need to break our bad cycle in terms of results, Lehtinen explains Härkälä’s dismissals.
Jarno Pikkarainen is an experienced coach. He has worked in the league for six seasons as a head coach and five years as an assistant coach.
The 51-year-old Pikkarainen has achieved the SM bronze at HIFK as head coach. In addition, he has two Mestis championships.
In the league, Jarno Pikkarainen has been the head coach of TPS, HIFK and HPK. Ässät hired Pikkarainen specifically because of this experience.
– He has been able to get the best out of his teams and brings good leadership and a high standard to our organization, says Ässie’s sports director Janne Vuorinen.
A couple of days ago it was reported that the Ässä icon Jesse Joensuu ends his career and starts as the sports coordinator of Pori Ässie with a two-year contract.