Mikkelin Jukurit

Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox hockey team Mikkelin Jukurit is a professional ice hockey team in Liiga, the top tier Finnish ice hockey league. They play in Mikkeli, Finland, at the Kalevankankaan jäähalli (also known as Let's Go Areena for sponsorship reasons). The team has won seven Mestis (second highest level) championships (2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2013, 2015, and 2016).

History

Mikkelin Jukurit was founded in 1970. During the 1970s Jukurit played in the second highest level but the 1980s and 1990s were spent in lower levels. The 1998–99 season was a turning point for the team, when Matti Turunen became the executive director and Risto Dufva from Jyväskylä became head coach. In the 1999–2000 season they won their first championship in the newly established Suomi-sarja league, and returned to the Mestis after a 20-year break. Jukurit won the Mestis championship in their first three seasons and made the semifinals consecutively on their first eight seasons. After Jukurit won a fourth championship in early 2006, Risto Dufva left the team. He was replaced by Finnish hockey legend Reijo Ruotsalainen as head coach but Ruotsalainen's tenure was short-lived and was replaced mid-season by a long-time assistant coach Pekka Lipiäinen. 2008–09 was the only Mestis season Jukurit did not make the playoffs. In 2009 an incorporation Jukurit HC Oy was founded. Until this the team had operated as an association.

After hiring Jarno Pikkarainen as head coach for the 2010–11 season, Jukurit returned to the finals but lost to Sport. Under Pikkarainen, Jukurit won another championship in 2012–13 and two more in 2015 and 2016 with Antti Pennanen as head coach. After the team's seventh Mestis championship, Jukurit was granted a permission to purchase a license to Liiga, the top league in Finnish ice hockey. During the team's 16 seasons in Mestis, they achieved seven gold medals, four silver medals, and one bronze medal.

Since the season 2016–17 Jukurit has played in Liiga. During the first four seasons, the team did not make the playoffs, finishing 11th, 13th, 14th, and 13th in the regular season. Coached by former NHL player Olli Jokinen, Jukurit finished second in the regular season of 2021–22, earning their first ever playoff spot.

Personnel

Current roster

Updated 15 September 2024 Template:Ice hockey team roster

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Team officials

Updated 8 January 2022

Title	Staff Member
Team Manager	Mikko Hakkarainen
Head Coach	Olli Jokinen
Coach	Sergei Krivokrasov
Coach	Vesa Surenkin
Goaltending Coach	Mika Tarvainen
Video Coach	Jussi Hyvärinen
Equipment Manager	Jose Rämö
Trainer	Jukka Kääriäinen
Trainer	Niko Randelin
Physician	Jouni Huttunen
Physician	Roni Saren
Masseuse	Jari Veteläinen

Retired numbers

• # 12 Antti Laakso
• # 22 Martti Salminen
• # 24 Lasse Kanerva
• # 31 Petri Lehtonen

Number 21 is not in circulation, it belonged to Sami Lehmusmetsä who died in a traffic accident.

Captains

Name	Seasons
Lasse Kanerva	2000–02, 2005–07
Mikko Hakkarainen	2002–05
Timo Kuuluvainen	2007–08
Ilkka Kallioinen	2008–12
Pasi Järvinen	2012–14
Juuso Akkanen	2014–15
Marko Kauppinen	2015–17
Miika Roine	2017–20
Jesper Piitulainen	2020–21
Petrus Palmu	2021–present

Head coaches

Head coach	Seasons
Jorma Paju	1970–1972
Teuvo Myyryläinen	1972–73
Martti Helle	1973–74
Jukka Mattila	1974–75
Eero Välivuori	1975–76
Jukka Mattila	1976–1980
Kari Kivilompolo	1980–81
Markku Mikkonen	1981–1983
Ole Renlund	1983–84
Matti Ruohonen	1984–1986	Replaced mid-season 1985–86 by Hannu Riipinen
Hannu Muhonen	1986–1988
Markku Mustonen	1988–89	Replaced mid-season by Martti Salminen
Martti Salminen	1989–1991
Pekka Kähönen	1991–92
Miroslav Paulus	1992–93
Jukka Penttinen	1992–1995
Pertti Pöyry	1995–1998
Risto Dufva	1998–2006
Reijo Ruotsalainen	2006–07	Replaced 26 January by Pekka Lipiäinen
Kari Makkonen	2007–08	Replaced 13 October by Pekka Lipiäinen
Pekka Lipiäinen	2008–09
Jarno Pikkarainen	2010–2014	Replaced 4 December by Timo Turunen, 16 December by Antti Pennanen
Antti Pennanen	2014–2016
Risto Dufva	2016–2018
Pekka Kangasalusta	2018–2020	Replaced 6 January by Marko Kauppinen
Marko Kauppinen	2020–21
Olli Jokinen	2021–present

Notable players

• G Tero Leinonen
• G Mikko Strömberg
• D Kalle Kaijomaa
• D Marko Kauppinen
• D Tommi Kovanen
• D Jukka-Pekka Laamanen
• D Mikko Mäenpää
• D Simo Mälkiä
• D Joni Tuominen
• D Ilkka Vaarasuo
• F Mikko Hakkarainen
• F Iivo Hokkanen
• F Juha-Pekka Hytönen
• F Petri Koskinen
• F Niko Laakkonen
• F Pentti Nöyränen
• F Olli Sipiläinen
• F Erkka Westerlund
• F,C Pentti Matikainen
• C Sergei Krivokrasov
• HC Risto Dufva
• HC Olli Jokinen
• HC Reijo Ruotsalainen

Notes: G = Goaltender, D = Defenceman, F = Forward, HC = Head coach, C = Coach