KalPa Naiset

Kalevan Pallo Naiset or KalPa Naiset are an ice hockey team in the Naisten Liiga (NSML), the premier women's ice hockey league in Finland. Founded in 1990, they play in Kuopio, the largest city in the eastern-central province of North Savo, at the Olvi Areena and Lippumäen jäähalli. The team has won one Aurora Borealis Cup silver medal, in 2021, and three bronze medals, in 1995, 1996, and 2017.

Kalevan Pallo Naiset
City	Kuopio, Finland
League	Naisten Liiga
Founded	1990; 33 years ago (1990)
Home arena	Olvi Areena Lippumäen jäähalli
Colours	Black, gold
Owner(s)	Juniori-KalPa ry
General manager	Jukka Koskinen
Head coach	Mika Väärälä
Captain	Johanna Juutilainen
Affiliate	KalPa Akatemia
Website	Official website
Current season

In 2020, the team qualified for the Aurora Borealis Cup playoff final and were set to face the reigning champions, Kiekko-Espoo, when the playoffs were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic before the first game of the finals. By making it to the playoff finals, KalPa was guaranteed at least a silver medal, which would have been the highest finish in team history to that point, but with the cancellation of the season no Finnish Championship (SM) medals were awarded.^[1]

Season-by-season results

This is a partial list of the most recent seasons completed by KalPa Naiset.
Note: Finish = Rank at end of regular season; GP = Games played, W = Wins (3 points), OTW = Overtime wins (2 points), OTL = Overtime losses (1 point), L = Losses, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, Pts = Points, Top scorer: Points (Goals+Assists)

Season	League	Preliminaries and regular season										Post season results
		Finish	GP	W	OTW	OTL	L	GF	GA	Pts	Top scorer
2015–16	Naisten SM-sarja	6th	28	7	1	1	19	47	124	24	Jo. Juutilainen 32 (10+22)	Lost quarterfinal, 0–2 (HPK)
2016–17	Naisten SM-sarja	3rd	28	17	1	4	6	100	72	57	T. Niskanen 36 (15+21)	Won bronze medal, 1–0 (HPK)
2017–18	Naisten Liiga	6th	30	14	2	1	13	112	92	47	T. Niskanen 44 (20+24)	Lost quarterfinal, 1–3 (Blues)
2018–19	Naisten Liiga	4th	30	19	0	0	11	154	83	57	T. Niskanen 79 (31+48)	Lost bronze medal, 0–1 (Kärpät)
2019–20	Naisten Liiga	3rd	30	17	4	2	3	124	64	61	E. Holopainen 62 (37+25)	Won semifinal, 3–0 (Ilves) Finals cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
2020–21	Naisten Liiga	2nd	25	18	1	0	6	121	51	56	E. Holopainen 64 (39+25)	Lost final, 1–3 (K-Espoo)
2021–22	Naisten Liiga	2nd	30	8	3	2	17	70	96	32	Jo. Juutilainen 34 (9+25)	Lost quarterfinal, 1–3 (K-Espoo)

Players and personnel

2022–23 roster

As of 9 November 2022^[2][3][4]

No.	Nat	Player	Pos	S/G	Age	Acquired	Birthplace
26		Jenna Hietala	F	L	18	2022	Oulainen, North Ostrobothnia, Finland
10		Elisa Holopainen (A)	F	L	21	2022	Tuusniemi, North Savo, Finland
20		Veera Holopainen	F	L	17	2021
37		Jenna Juutilainen	G	L	32	2020	Varkaus, North Savo, Finland
17		Johanna Juutilainen (C)	F	L	32	2020	Varkaus, North Savo, Finland
27		Jenna Kaila	F	R	21	2022	Kokkola, Central Ostrobothnia, Finland
12		Liisa Kastikainen	F	L	22	2016	Outokumpu, North Karelia, Finland
2		Inka Katajisto	F	L	22	2018	Pyhäselkä, North Karelia, Finland
28		Mimmi Keinonen	F	L	19	2022
24		Mirka Kivi	D	L	20	2019	Valkeakoski, Pirkanmaa, Finland
16		Tanja Koljonen (A)	D	L	27	2020	Mikkeli, South Savo, Finland
21		Kaisla Kortelainen	F	L	21	2020
31		Aino Laitinen	G	L	20	2022	Sonkajärvi, North Savo, Finland
14		Ella Lappi	F	L	23	2014	Elimäki, Kymenlaakso, Finland
11		Adalmiina Makkonen	D	L	18	2022	Oulu, North Ostrobothnia, Finland
13		Alisa Makkonen	F	L	18	2022	Oulu, North Ostrobothnia, Finland
5		Elli Mäkelä	D	L	22	2020	Kotka, Kymenlaakso, Finland
18		Eveliina Nurmi	D	L	25	2017	Alavus, South Ostrobothnia, Finland
6		Venla Nurmi	D	L	24	2021	Alavus, South Ostrobothnia, Finland
49		Veera Paroinen	F	L	17	2021
15		Emilia Pekkarinen	F	L	24	2021
45		Veera Pohjala	D	L	21	2021
55		Tiina Ranne	G	L	28	2017	Harjavalta, Satakunta, Finland
7		Sanni Rantala	D	R	20	2022	Riihimäki, Kanta-Häme, Finland
22		Salla Rantanen	F	L	30	2012	Riihimäki, Kanta-Häme, Finland
25		Tuuli Repo	D	L	27	2021	Kuopio, North Savo, Finland
9		Vilma Sneck	F	L	21	2022
23		Emmi Tirkkonen	F	L	18	2020

Coaching staff and team personnel

• Head coach: Mika Väärälä
• Assistant coach: Pekka Romppanen
• Conditioning coach: Tarja Koski
• Team managers: Taina Lappi & Maarit Paroinen
• Equipment managers: Jari Hämäläinen, Irina Ivanoff, & Harri Mäkkeli

Team captains

• Johanna Juutilainen, 2010–11
• Isa Rahunen, 2011–12
• Marjo Voutilainen, 2012–13
• Venla Hovi & Anni Kettunen, 2013–14
• Johanna Juutilainen, 2015–2018
• Tanja Niskanen, 2018–19^[5]
• Tiina Ranne & Emma Ritari, 2019–20^[6]
• Emma Ritari, 2020–21
• Johanna Juutilainen, 2021–

Head coaches

• Mikko Miettinen, 0–2000
• Seppo Tirronen, 2000–
• Marjo Voutilainen, 2016–2022
• Mika Väärälä, 2022^[7]–

Awards and honours

Finnish Championship

•   Aurora Borealis Cup Runners-up (1): 2021
•   Third Place (3) : 1995, 1996, 2017

Sources: ^[8][9]

Player awards

• Riikka Nieminen Award (Player of the Year)

• 2020–21: Elisa Holopainen^[10]
• 2019–20: Tanja Niskanen
• 2018–19: Elisa Holopainen

• Katja Riipi Award (Best forward)

• 2020–21: Elisa Holopainen
• 2019–20: Elisa Holopainen
• 2018–19: Elisa Holopainen

• Marianne Ihalainen Award (Top point scorer)

• 2018–19: Elisa Holopainen

• Tiia Reima Award (Top goal scorer)

• 2020–21: Matilda Nilsson
• 2019–20: Elisa Holopainen
• 2018–19: Elisa Holopainen

• Sari Fisk Award (Best plus/minus)

• 2019–20: Matilda Nilsson

• Emma Laaksonen Award (Fair-play player)

• 2020–21: Johanna Juutilainen
• 2016–17: Tanja Niskanen

• Hannu Saintula Award (Coach of the Year)

• 2019–20: Marjo Voutilainen

Player of the Month

• September 2020 – Elisa Holopainen^[11]
• September 2019 – Matilda Nilsson^[12]

All-Stars

First Team

• 2020–21: Elisa Holopainen (W), Matilda Nilsson (W)
• 2019–20: Elisa Holopainen (W), Tanja Niskanen (C), Matilda Nilsson (W)
• 2018–19: Tanja Niskanen (C), Elisa Holopainen (W)
• 2014–15: Matilda Nilsson (W)
• 2013–14: Venla Hovi (W)

Second Team

• 2020–21: Tiina Ranne (G)
• 2019–20: Tiina Ranne (G)
• 2018–19: Matilda Nilsson (W)
• 2017–18: Matilda Nilsson (W), Elisa Holopainen (W)
• 2016–17: Matilda Nilsson (W), Tanja Niskanen (C)

Team records

As of 10 April 2022

Single-season records

• Most goals in a season: Elisa Holopainen, 39 goals (25 games; 2020–21) / Matilda Nilsson, 39 goals (30 games; 2018–19)
• Most assists in a season: Tanja Niskanen, 48 assists (29 games; 2018–19)
• Most points in a season: Tanja Niskanen, 79 points (29 games; 2018–19)
• Most points in a season, defenceman: Kirsi Hänninen, 30 points (23 games; 1995–96)
• Best points per game, over 10 games played: Marjo Voutilainen, 3.00 (14 games; 1997–98)
• Most penalty minutes in a season: Kirsi Hänninen, 66 PIM (23 games; 1995–96)
• Best save percentage in a season, over ten games played: Tiina Ranne, .942 SVS% (18 games; 2019–20)
• Best goals against average in a season, over ten games played: Tiina Ranne, 1.86 GAA (14 games; 2020–21)

Career records

• Most career goals: Tanja Niskanen, 257 goals (301 games; 2006–2022)
• Most career assists: Tanja Niskanen, 231 assists (301 games; 2006–2022)
• Most career points: Tanja Niskanen, 488 points (301 games; 2006–2022)
• Best career points per game, over 30 games played: Elisa Holopainen, 1.91 points per game (129 games; 2016–2021)
• Most career points, defenceman: Emma Ritari, 102 points (251 games; 2009–2021)
• Most career penalty minutes: Salla Rantanen, 306 PIM (236 games; 2012–2022)
• Most games played, skater: Tanja Niskanen, 301 games (2006–2022)
• Most games played, goaltender: Jenna Juutilainen, 115 games (2009–2022)

All-time scoring leaders

The top regular season point scorers in KalPa Naiset history.

As of April 2021

Note: Nat = Nationality; Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game;   = 2022–23 KalPa player

Points

Nat	Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	P/G
	Tanja Niskanen	F	301	257	231	488	1.62
	Johanna Juutilainen	F	280	128	198	326	1.16
	Matilda Nilsson	F	189	164	140	304	1.61
	Elisa Holopainen	F	129	133	114	247	1.91
	Marjo Voutilainen	F	177	86	101	187	1.06
	Salla Rantanen	F	236	87	91	178	0.75
	Kati Kovalainen	F	70	72	35	107	1.53
	Emma Ritari	D	251	34	68	102	0.41
	Tanja Koljonen	D	112	17	70	87	0.78
	Eija Rahunen	F	80	28	54	82	1.02
	Tiina Paananen	F	58	46	35	81	1.40

Source(s): Elite Prospects^[13]

Notable alumni

Main category: KalPa Naiset players

Years active with KalPa listed alongside players' names.^[14]

• Venla Hovi, 2012–2014
• Kirsi Hänninen, 1995–96
• Kati Kovalainen, 1993–1996
• Rose Matilainen, 1993–1996
• Terhi Mertanen, 1999–2001
• Matilda Nilsson, 2014–2021
• Oona Parviainen, 1993–1999
• Tuula Puputti, 1992–1995
• Isa Rahunen, 2006–2013
• Saila Saari, 2020–21
• Riikka Sallinen, 1995–96
• Eve Savander, 2013–14
• Marjo Voutilainen, 1995–2001 & 2010–2014

International player(s)

•   Nozomi Kiribuchi, 2015–16

References

1. Pulkkinen, Aki-Petteri (27 May 2020). "Näkemys: Naiskiekolle ei jäänyt kaudesta mitään käteen − Korona ryösti vuoden työn". Jatkoaika.com (in Finnish). Retrieved 30 August 2020.
2. "Naisten Liiga (W) - KalPa, 2022-2023 Roster". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
3. "2022-2023 Naisten Liiga – Kokoonpano KalPa". Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). September 2022. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
4. "Joukkue 2022-2023". KalPa Naiset (in Finnish). Retrieved 26 September 2022.
5. Foster, Meredith (30 November 2018). "Q&A with Tanja Niskanen". The Ice Garden. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
6. "Naisten Liigan avausturnaus Kuopiossa - esittelyssä kauden 2019-2020 joukkue". Juniori-KalPa ry (in Finnish). 4 September 2019. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
7. Ruotsalainen, Annu (6 April 2022). "KalPa Naisten päävalmentaja vaihtuu – KMH Budapestin kanssa kolme mestaruutta voittanut valmentaja Mika Väärälä siirtyy Kuopioon". Jatkoaika (in Finnish). Retrieved 21 May 2022.
8. Suomen Jääkiekkoliitto; Liiga. Aaltonen, Juha (ed.). Jääkiekkokirja 2019–2020 (PDF) (in Finnish). Helsinki: Uusi Suomi/Kiekkolehti. ISSN 0784-3321. OCLC 476321083.
9. "Juniori-KalPa ry - KalPan naisille SM-hopeaa". Juniori-KalPa ry (in Finnish). 26 March 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
10. Niemeläinen, Jonne (16 March 2020). "Huikeat tehot kerännyt 19-vuotias KalPa-hyökkääjä Elisa Holopainen palkittiin Naisten Liigan runkosarjan parhaana – huomenna edessä kauden tärkein peli". Yle (in Finnish). Retrieved 30 March 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
11. Mennander, Pasi (1 October 2020). "KalPan Elisa Holopainen Naisten Liigan syyskuun pelaaja". leijonat.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Ice Hockey Association. Retrieved 13 February 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
12. Mennander, Pasi (2 October 2019). "KalPan Matilda Nilsson Naisten Liigan syyskuun pelaaja". leijonat.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Ice Hockey Association. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
13. "KalPa - All Time Regular Season Player Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 10 April 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
14. "KalPa - All Time Overall Totals Player Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved 30 March 2021.

External links

• Team information and statistics from Eliteprospects.com and Eurohockey.com and Hockeyarchives.info (in French)
• KalPa Naiset on Facebook  
• KalPa Naiset on Instagram