2021–22 SM-liiga
LeagueSM-liiga
SportIce hockey
DurationSeptember 2021 – April 2022
Number of teams15
TV partner(s)Telia
C More
Regular season
Best recordTappara
  Runners-upJukurit
Season MVPPetrus Palmu (Jukurit)
Top scorerAnton Levtchi (Tappara)
Playoffs
Playoffs MVPJoona Luoto (Tappara)
Finals championsTappara
  Runners-upTPS

The 2021–22 SM-liiga season was the 47th season of the SM-liiga, the top level of ice hockey in Finland, since the league's formation in 1975.

Teams

TeamCityHead coachArenaCapacityCaptain
HIFKHelsinkiVille Peltonen[1]Helsingin jäähalli8,200Teemu Tallberg
HPKHämeenlinnaMatti Tiilikainen[2]Pohjantähti Areena5,360Markus Nenonen
IlvesTampereJouko Myrrä[3]Tampereen jäähalli, Hakametsä (September - November 2021)
Nokia Arena (December 2021 – present)		7,300
13,330		Eemeli Suomi
JukuritMikkeliOlli Jokinen[4]Ikioma Areena4,200Petrus Palmu
JYP JyväskyläJukka Ahvenjärvi[5]LähiTapiola Areena4,437Jan Ščotka
KalPaKuopioTommi Miettinen[6]Olvi Areena5,300Tuomas Kiiskinen
KooKooKouvolaOlli Salo[7]Lumon Areena5,950Alexander Bonsaksen
KärpätOuluLauri Mikkola[6]Oulun Energia Areena6,400Atte Ohtamaa
LukkoRaumaMarko Virtanen[6]Kivikylän Areena4,700Anrei Hakulinen
PelicansLahtiTommi Niemelä[6]Isku Areena5,371Joonas Jalvanti
SaiPaLappeenrantaPekka Virta[8]Lappeenrannan jäähalli, Kisapuisto4,820Jarno Koskiranta
SportVaasaRisto Dufva[9]Vaasan Sähkö Areena5,185Erik Riska
TapparaTampereJussi Tapola[6]Tampereen jäähalli, Hakametsä (September - November 2021)
Nokia Arena (December 2021 – present)		7,300
13,330		Otto Rauhala
TPSTurkuJussi Ahokas[10]Gatorade Center11,820Juhani Jasu
ÄssätPoriAri-Pekka Selin[6] and Karri KiviIsomäki Areena (renamed to West Areena)6,350Jarno Kärki

Regular season

A game between TPS and Ilves on 11 September 2021
Opening game of new Tampere Deck Arena on 3 December 2021

Standings

Top six advanced straight to the quarter-finals, while teams between 7th and 10th positions played a wild card round for the final two spots. The Liiga is a closed series and thus there is no relegation. The top 3 teams of the regular season qualified for the Champions Hockey League and the 4th team to the Spengler Cup.

The match program was on hiatus during the EHT, Karjala Cup from 7 to 14 November. In December, Christmas was a week-long match break. In December, a new ice rink named Tampere Deck Arena (Nokia Arena) was opened in Tampere for the use of Ilves and Tappara. Two matches were played in the new arena on February 19, when Ilves hosts his own in the afternoon and Tappara in the evening.

Pos Team Pld W OTW OTL L GF GA GD PCT Final Result
1 Tappara 60 31 9 4 16 188 120 +68 .639 Advance to Quarterfinals
2 Jukurit 60 31 8 4 17 166 138 +28 .628
3 Ilves 60 28 10 7 15 191 168 +23 .617
4 TPS 60 29 6 3 22 151 137 +14 .567
5 HIFK 59 27 5 8 19 174 146 +28 .559
6 Kärpät 60 24 7 9 20 171 141 +30 .528
7 HPK 60 24 9 5 22 147 135 +12 .528 Advance to Wild-card round
8 KooKoo 60 25 5 9 21 148 141 +7 .522
9 Pelicans 60 25 4 10 21 142 142 0 .517
10 Lukko 58 24 5 7 22 169 151 +18 .511
11 KalPa 60 19 9 13 19 167 159 +8 .489
12 Sport 59 18 8 7 26 120 155 −35 .435
13 JYP 60 14 8 4 34 139 221 −82 .344
14 SaiPa 60 15 3 7 35 128 193 −65 .322
15 Ässät 60 11 7 6 36 127 181 −54 .294
Source: Liiga
Rules for classification: 1) Points percentage; 2) 3-point wins 3) Goal difference; 4) Goals scored; 5) Head-to-head points.[11]

Statistics

Scoring leaders

The following shows the top ten players who led the league in points, at the conclusion of the regular season.[12] If two or more skaters are tied (i.e. same number of points, goals and played games), all of the tied skaters are shown.

Player Team GP G A Pts +/– PIM
Finland Anton Levtchi Tappara 55 26 35 61 +23 46
Finland Petrus Palmu Jukurit 59 26 33 59 +27 24
Czech Republic Lukáš Jašek Pelicans 54 13 38 51 +23 30
Canada Michael Joly HPK 58 21 29 50 +18 16
Finland Eemeli Suomi Ilves 54 19 30 49 +2 34
Finland Jere Innala HIFK 54 18 30 48 +13 30
Czech Republic Jiří Smejkal Pelicans 44 25 20 45 +16 32
Finland Waltteri Merelä Tappara 57 21 23 44 +31 38
Finland Eetu Koivistoinen HIFK 53 19 24 43 +11 8
Finland Vili Saarijärvi Lukko 52 17 26 43 +19 12

Leading goaltenders

The following shows the top ten goaltenders who led the league in goals against average, provided that they have played at least 40% of their team's minutes, at the conclusion of games played on 25 September 2021.[13]

Player Team(s) GP TOI W T L GA SO Sv% GAA
Finland Oskari Salminen Jukurit 5 279:42 1 2 1 7 1 94.35 1.50
Russia Andrei Kareyev TPS 7 415:17 5 0 2 11 0 93.25 1.59
Finland Niilo Halonen HIFK 3 180:00 3 0 0 5 0 89.80 1.67
Finland Niclas Westerholm SaiPa 6 358:06 2 1 3 11 1 90.83 1.84
Finland Rasmus Reijola Sport 3 177:25 2 0 1 6 1 91.89 2.03
Czech Republic Nick Malik KooKoo 4 235:17 2 0 2 8 0 92.16 2.04
Finland Jasper Patrikainen Pelicans 3 142:54 1 2 0 5 0 91.67 2.10
Russia Stanislav Galimov Kärpät 6 366:32 3 3 0 13 0 92.07 2.13
Finland Christian Heljanko Tappara 4 238:58 2 1 1 9 0 86.76 2.26
Canada Michael Garteig HIFK 3 179:43 0 2 1 7 0 88.89 2.34

Playoffs

Contrary to the best of three format used in the past seasons, the wild-card round will take place in best of two format, with overtime only played after the second game if the points are tied. The remaining rounds will be played in the best-of-7 format.[14]

Bracket

Wild-card round (best-of-2) Quarter-finals (best-of-7) Semi-finals (best-of-7) Finals (best-of-7)
1 Tappara 4
7 HPK 0 10 Lukko 1
10 Lukko 1 1 Tappara 4
8 KooKoo 1
2 Jukurit 3 (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round)
8 KooKoo 4
1 Tappara 4
4 TPS 1
3 Ilves 4
8 KooKoo 2 6 Kärpät 3
9 Pelicans 1 3 Ilves 2 Bronze medal game
4 TPS 4
4 TPS 4 3 Ilves 1
5 HIFK 3 8 KooKoo 0

Wild-card round

The wild-card round series will be decided as a two game series. Compared to normal playoffs format both games can also end on a tie. If after two games both teams have one win or both games have ended on a tie, immediately after the second game an additional game will play played, which will determine the team that will go through to next round. The additional game will be played as five against five game and with 20 minutes periods. Sudden death rule applies. Penalties received during the 2nd game, which have not ended when 2nd game ends, will be cancelled. Only exception is game misconducts, which will carry on to the additional game.[15]

Quarter-finals

Semifinals

Bronze medal game

24 April 2022
17:00		Ilves3–2
(2–0, 1–2, 0–0)		KooKooNokia Arena, Tampere
Attendance: 11,606
Game reference
Vadim ŽerenkoGoaliesNick MalíkReferees:
Antti Boman
Aaro Brännare
Linesmen:
Samuli Niskanen
Harri Perämäki
S. Balázs (L. Lancaster, E. Päkkilä) – 10:181–0
L. Lancaster (J. Oden, H. Haapala) – 17:242–0
E. Suomi (S. Johansson, P. Kontiola) (PP1) – 32:053–0
3–137:31 – T. Rautiainen (K. Strömberg, J. Antonen) (PP1)
3–238:25 – K. Strömberg (R. Koblížek, R. Tuomola)
2 minPenalties12 min
37Shots22

Finals

20 April 2022
18:30		Tappara2–1
(1–1, 0–0, 1–0)		TPSNokia Arena, Tampere
Attendance: 10,767
Game reference
Christian HeljankoGoaliesAndrei KareyevReferees:
Mikko Kaukokari
Jukka-Pekka Koistinen
Linesmen:
Lauri Nikulainen
Hannu Sormunen
0–105:15 – J. Slafkovský (M. Nurmi, V. Lajunen) (PP2)
A. Levtchi (K. Tanus, O. Leskinen) (PP1) – 19:221–1
K. Kuusela (J. Luoto, S. Kinnunen) (PP1) – 49:462–1
10 minPenalties6 min
18Shots18
23 April 2022
17:00		TPS1–2 OT1
(0–1, 0–0, 1–0, 0–1)		TapparaGatorade Center, Turku
Attendance: 10,500
Game reference
Andrei KareyevGoaliesChristian HeljankoReferees:
Joonas Kova
Petri Lindqvist
Linesmen:
Niko Jusi
Joni Pekkala
0–117:53 – W. Merelä (B. Austin, M. Seppälä)
J. Pärssinen (M. Nurmi, S. Vainionpää) – 54:311–1
1–262:41 – C. Bertrand (K. Kuusela, C. Jürgens)
2 minPenalties6 min
36Shots32
25 April 2022
18:30		Tappara3–1
(0–0, 2–0, 1–1)		TPSNokia Arena, Tampere
Attendance: 12,075
Game reference
Christian HeljankoGoaliesAndrei KareyevReferees:
Mikko Kaukokari
Jukka-Pekka Koistinen
Linesmen:
Lauri Nikulainen
Hannu Sormunen
V. Savinainen (A. Levtchi, K. Tanus) (PP1) – 31:091–0
O. Leskinen (W. Merelä, A. Levtchi) – 38:312–0
2–144:36 – J. Rodewald (J. Slafkovský, T. Steenbergen)
P. Puhakka (V. Savinainen, P. Virta) (ENG) – 58:413–1
4 minPenalties4 min
15Shots23
26 April 2022
18:30		TPS1–0
(0–0, 0–0, 1–0)		TapparaGatorade Center, Turku
Attendance: 10,251
Game reference
Andrei KareyevGoaliesChristian HeljankoReferees:
Joonas Kova
Petri Lindqvist
Linesmen:
Niko Jusi
Joni Pekkala
E. Eronen (A. Intonen, M. Hults) – 53:171–0
0 minPenalties6 min
27Shots25
28 April 2022
18:30		Tappara1–0
(1–0, 0–0, 0–0)		TPSNokia Arena, Tampere
Attendance: 12,451
Game reference
Christian HeljankoGoaliesAndrei KareyevReferees:
Mikko Kaukokari
Jukka-Pekka Koistinen
Linesmen:
Lauri Nikulainen
Hannu Sormunen
J. Luoto – 00:351–0
4 minPenalties20 min
23Shots16

Tappara wins the finals 4-1.

Final rankings

Tappara
TPS
Ilves
4KooKoo
5Jukurit
6HIFK
7Kärpät
8Lukko
9HPK
10Pelicans
11KalPa
12Sport
13JYP
14SaiPa
15Ässät

References

  1. ↑ "Ville Peltonen on HIFK:n seuraava päävalmentaja!" (in Finnish). Iltalehti. 2021-02-08. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  2. ↑ "HPK-KAPTEENILLE JATKOSOPIMUS 2021-2022" (in Finnish). HPK. 2020-12-22. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  3. ↑ "Jouko Myrrä jatkaa Ilveksen päävalmentajana – liigajoukkueen valmennusryhmä pysyy ennallaan" (in Finnish). Ilves. 2020-11-24. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  4. ↑ "NHL-legenda Olli Jokinen Jukurien peräsimeen − "Koen olevani valmis ottamaan seuraavan askeleen valmennusurallani"" (in Finnish). Jatkoaika.com. 2021-02-15. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  5. ↑ "Jukka Ahvenjärvi on JYPin uusi päävalmentaja − "Päivittäisessä valmennuksessa on kyse laadusta ja vaatimustasosta"" (in Finnish). Jatkoaika.com. 2021-04-16. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "SM-liigassa isoja valmentajasiirtoja – Pekka Virta on tyrkyllä SaiPaan, Mikko Mannerilla kiperä tilanne" (in Finnish). Iltalehti. 2020-11-19. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  7. ↑ "KooKoo nimitti Olli Salon uudeksi päävalmentajakseen | Uutiset | Liiga" (in Finnish). Liiga.fi. 2021-04-29. Retrieved 2021-05-05.
  8. ↑ "Pekka Virta saa SaiPassa kakkosvalmentajakseen Ville Hämäläisen – Matias Lehtonen lähtee Ketterästä Rovaniemelle, päinvastaiseen suuntaan SaiPan liigajoukkueen toiseksi apuvalmentajaksi saapuu Santeri Immonen" (in Finnish). Etelä-Saimaa. 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  9. ↑ "Seitsemän ottelun tappioputksessa seilaava Sport jatkaa tutussa komennossa – Risto Dufvalle jatkosopimus" (in Finnish). MTV Uutiset. 2020-11-25. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  10. ↑ "Tässä on TPS:n tuleva valmennustiimi – MM-kultavalmentaja Jussi Ahokkaan rinnalle muutama yllätysnimi" (in Finnish). Hämeen Sanomat. 2020-12-10. Retrieved 2021-04-16.
  11. ↑ "Joukkuetilastot | Runkosarja 2020-2021 | Tilastot | Liiga". Liiga.fi. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
  12. ↑ "Pelaajatilastot" [Player stats] (in Finnish). Liiga. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
  13. ↑ "Summary — Goalies". Liiga. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
  14. ↑ "Playoffs-ottelut 2022 lähestyvät – Näin ratkaisupeleissä pelataan | Uutiset | Liiga" (in Finnish). Liiga.fi. 2022-03-15. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
  15. ↑ "Schedule". Liiga. Retrieved 2022-03-25.
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