Aaro Kivilinna Memorial Trophy
Encyclopedia
The Aaro Kivilinna Memorial Trophy is an award given every year since 1973 to the best ice hockey club overall in Finland
by the Finnish SM-liiga
. The recipient is determined by the final standings of each club in the SM-liiga or Mestis
as well as their teams in the three topmost junior leagues and the women's league. (Thus the winner is quite often another club than the SM-liiga champion of that year.)
Aaro Kivilinna was an ice hockey defenseman from Helsinki
, Finland who also worked as a sports journalist and as the secretary and later vice-president of the Finnish Ice Hockey Association
. He was killed in action in the Winter War
in February 1940.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
by the Finnish SM-liiga
SM-liiga
The SM-liiga is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. As of March 2008, it is ranked by the IIHF as the second strongest league in Europe. It was created in 1975 to replace the SM-sarja, which was fundamentally an amateur league. The SM-liiga is not directly overseen by the Finnish Ice...
. The recipient is determined by the final standings of each club in the SM-liiga or Mestis
Mestis
Mestis, , is the second-highest ice hockey league in Finland.The league was established in 2000 to replace the first division. Since 2000, Mestis has been the highest hockey league in Finland that can be reached with playing merits only; the SM-liiga was closed in 2000...
as well as their teams in the three topmost junior leagues and the women's league. (Thus the winner is quite often another club than the SM-liiga champion of that year.)
Aaro Kivilinna was an ice hockey defenseman from Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Finland who also worked as a sports journalist and as the secretary and later vice-president of the Finnish Ice Hockey Association
Finnish Ice Hockey Association
The Finnish Ice Hockey Association is the governing body of ice hockey in Finland. In 1927, the Finnish Skating Association introduced ice hockey as part of its program and through that organization, Finland joined the International Ice Hockey Federation in 1928. The Finnish Ice Hockey Association...
. He was killed in action in the Winter War
Winter War
The Winter War was a military conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet offensive on 30 November 1939 – three months after the start of World War II and the Soviet invasion of Poland – and ended on 13 March 1940 with the Moscow Peace Treaty...
in February 1940.
Winners of the Aaro Kivilinna Memorial Trophy
| Season | Team |
|---|---|
| 1972–73 | Ilves Ilves Ilves is a Finnish sports club nowadays mostly known for their youth work. The ice hockey team plays in the SM-liiga at the Tampereen jäähalli in Hakametsä... |
| 1973–74 | Ilves |
| 1974–75 | Tappara Tappara Tappara is an ice hockey team in the SM-liiga. They play in Tampere, Finland at Tampereen jäähalli. The team have won 15 league championships .... |
| 1975–76 | Jokerit Jokerit Jokerit is an ice-hockey team from Helsinki, Finland, playing in the Finnish Elite League, SM-liiga. The team has won 6 league championships... |
| 1976–77 | TPS TPS (ice hockey) TPS or Turun Palloseura is an ice hockey team and 11-time champion of SM-liiga. They play in Turku, Finland at the HK Arena. In terms of championships, TPS is the most successful team in SM-liiga history.-Team history:... |
| 1977–78 | Ilves |
| 1978–79 | Tappara |
| 1979–80 | Ässät Ässät Ässät is an ice hockey team in the Finnish elite league, SM-liiga. They play in Pori, Finland at the Porin jäähalli.-Team history:... |
| 1980–81 | Ilves |
| 1981–82 | Ilves |
| 1982–83 | Ilves |
| 1983–84 | Tappara |
| 1984–85 | Kärpät Kärpät Oulun Kärpät is an ice hockey team in the SM-liiga based in Oulu, Finland. Their logo features a stoat ; "kärpät" is Finnish for stoats or ermines. The team has won five league championships .-History:... |
| 1985–86 | HIFK HIFK (ice hockey) HIFK is an ice hockey team based in Helsinki, Finland. The team plays at Helsinki Ice Hall. It was founded in 1897... |
| 1986–87 | HIFK |
| 1987–88 | HIFK |
| 1988–89 | HIFK |
| 1989–90 | Ilves |
| 1990–91 | TPS |
| 1991–92 | JYP |
| 1992–93 | Ilves |
| 1993–94 | Tappara |
| 1994–95 | TPS |
| 1995–96 | Jokerit |
| 1996–97 | Jokerit and TPS (tied) |
| 1997–98 | Jokerit |
| 1998–99 | Jokerit |
| 1999–00 | Jokerit |
| 2000–01 | Kärpät |
| 2001–02 | TPS |
| 2002–03 | Jokerit |
| 2003–04 | TPS |
| 2004–05 | Kärpät |
| 2005–06 | Kärpät |
| 2006–07 | Blues Espoo Blues The Blues are an ice hockey team in the SM-liiga. They play in Espoo, Finland at the Barona Areena.-Team history:The club was established in February 1984 as Kiekko-Espoo and played their first season in 1984-1985 in the Finnish Second Division... |
| 2007–08 | Kärpät |
| 2008–09 | Blues |
| 2010–11 | Blues |