Hannu Aravirta
Encyclopedia
Hannu Aravirta is a Finnish
ice hockey
player and an ice hockey coach for the Finnish national men's team
, SM-liiga
and Elitserien
.
in the SM-liiga
. In the following season Aravirta played for his hometown team SaPKo in the Suomi-sarja
for one season (1974–1975). Aravirta then headed to Kärpät
for a three season stint. Kärpät gained promotion from the first division to the SM-Liiga after the 1976-1977 season and Aravirta played for the team in the 1977-1978 season. Aravirta left Oulu and Finland as he went to Södertälje SK
to play in Swedish Allsvenskan
. Aravirta stayed in Södertälje for a total of 3 seasons (1978–1980), and then played in Kiruna AIF for 1980–1981, his last season in Sweden. Aravirta returned to Finland and played for Kärpät for two seasons (1981–1983) before retiring from playing.
head coaching job was in the 1988-1989 season at JYP. Aravirta was the head coach of JYP for 5 seasons (1989–1993), winning 2 silver medals, 1 bronze and the Coach of the Year trophy (Kalevi Numminen trophy
). More success came when in 1993 Aravirta was hired as the new head coach for Jokerit
. In his first season at the helm of Jokerit Aravirta won the Finnish Championship. In the following season (1994–1995) he won silver and at his third season (1995–1996) another Finnish Championship.
After the success of 1996 Aravirta left his position in Jokerit to concentrate in his national team assistant coaching job. Aravirta returned to the SM-Liiga for the 2003-2004 season when he was hired to coach former Helsinki
rivals HIFK
. Aravirta's first season was good as HIFK won bronze but his second season however was to be different. Aravirta was fired during the 2005 SM-liiga playoffs after very poor play from HIFK. Aravirta made his third return to SM-Liiga in 2006 when he replaced Jami Kauppi as the head coach of Pelicans
(whom he has lifted from a team constantly fighting among the bottom teams to a force to be reckoned with. In the 2007-2008 season, Pelicans led the league for the greater part of the year). During his 10-season SM-Liiga coaching career Aravirta has won 2 championships, 3 silver medals and 2 bronze medals.
In January 2010, Aravirta signed on for Modo Hockey
in the Swedish Elitserien. His contract was not extended after the season, and he signed with Kärpät
in November 2010.
Aravirta's first international success came in the 1994 Winter Olympics
where Finland was 3rd, winning its second Olympic medal in ice hockey. Finland also placed 2nd in the 1994 Ice Hockey World Championships
, losing to Canada in a shootout. In 1995 Finland won its first ever World Championship when the Finnish team defeated hosts of the 1995 Ice Hockey World Championship
tournament, Sweden
4–1.
The following World Championships in 1996
and 1997 were disappointments as the Finnish team couldn't qualify for medal games (1997 Ice Hockey World Championships
were in Finland). 1998 became a blockbuster season for Finnish ice hockey. First the Finns defeated Canada
in the 1998 Winter Olympics
to win their third Olympic medal, again a bronze one. 1998 Ice Hockey World Championships
featured Finland going against Sweden in the two game finals. Finland lost the first final game 1–0 and the second game was a 0–0 tie. Sweden won the World Championships and Aravirta took his first medal as the head coach of Finland (Curt Lindström
retired after 1997 championships). Aravirta had a good start as the head coach of team Finland and more was to come. in 1999
Finland was yet again in the finals but this time the Czech Republic
won.
The 2000
tournament was a step backwards; the Finnish team was beaten by Slovakia
in the semifinals so Finland was to face Canada in the bronze game. Finland won the tight game 2–1 and got its first bronze medal in the World Championships. The 2001 World Championship tournament
was Aravirta's last tournament in medals. Finland fought its way to the Finals and faced off with the Czech Republic. Finland led the game 2–0 but ended up losing 2–3 in overtime. The 2002 Olympic tournament
saw the Finnish team lose to Canada in the quarterfinals 2-1 and the 2002 World Championships
didn't have a better ending for Finns. Finland lost to Sweden in the Bronze game and the Swedes would avenge their defeat in 1995 (the 2002 tournament was played in Sweden). The 2003 Ice Hockey World Championships
marked the last tournament for Hannu Aravirta as the head coach of team Finland. Finland progressed through to the quarterfinals where it yet again faced Sweden. Finland had a comfortable 5–1 Lead after the first period but 2nd and 3rd periods of that game were catastrophic. Sweden won the game 6–5 and dropped Finland from the semifinals. After retiring from national team coaching Aravirta was the head coach of the Finnish Junior Ice Hockey Team
.
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...
ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
player and an ice hockey coach for the Finnish national men's team
Finnish national men's ice hockey team
The Finnish men's national ice hockey team, or Leijonat / Lejonen , as it is called in Finland, is governed by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association...
, 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...
and Elitserien
Elitserien
Elitserien, is a professional ice hockey league composed of twelve teams in Sweden...
.
Career as player
Aravirta debuted in the 1973-1974 season, playing 35 games for TuToTuTo
TuTo is a Finnish ice hockey team based at the new Kupittaan jäähalli , Turku. Established in 1929. TuTo plays in Turku, Finland, and is one of two clubs in that city . Full name of the club is TuTo Hockey...
in the 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...
. In the following season Aravirta played for his hometown team SaPKo in the Suomi-sarja
Suomi-sarja
The Suomi-sarja is Finland's third-highest ice hockey league. Suomi-sarja has 4 divisions. Suomi-sarja has been played since the 1999-2000 season. Prior to this, Finland's third league had been Division II since 1975 and before that the Provincial Series since 1947. During the 1990s the series also...
for one season (1974–1975). Aravirta then headed to 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:...
for a three season stint. Kärpät gained promotion from the first division to the SM-Liiga after the 1976-1977 season and Aravirta played for the team in the 1977-1978 season. Aravirta left Oulu and Finland as he went to Södertälje SK
Södertälje SK
Södertälje Sportklubb is a Swedish professional ice hockey club playing in HockeyAllsvenskan. Södertälje were charter members of Elitserien when the league was founded in 1975 and have since played 24 seasons in the league...
to play in Swedish Allsvenskan
Allsvenskan (hockey)
HockeyAllsvenskan, before the 2005–06 season called Allsvenskan and SuperAllsvenskan, is the name of the second highest-level Swedish ice hockey league...
. Aravirta stayed in Södertälje for a total of 3 seasons (1978–1980), and then played in Kiruna AIF for 1980–1981, his last season in Sweden. Aravirta returned to Finland and played for Kärpät for two seasons (1981–1983) before retiring from playing.
Career as coach
Aravirta's first SM-LiigaSM-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...
head coaching job was in the 1988-1989 season at JYP. Aravirta was the head coach of JYP for 5 seasons (1989–1993), winning 2 silver medals, 1 bronze and the Coach of the Year trophy (Kalevi Numminen trophy
Kalevi Numminen trophy
The Kalevi Numminen trophy is an ice hockey award given by the Finnish SM-liiga to the best coach of the season. In 2008 it was awarded to Petri Matikainen of Blues.Trophy Winners:1977-78: Kari Mäkinen 1978-79: Veli-Pekka Roiha...
). More success came when in 1993 Aravirta was hired as the new head coach for 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...
. In his first season at the helm of Jokerit Aravirta won the Finnish Championship. In the following season (1994–1995) he won silver and at his third season (1995–1996) another Finnish Championship.
After the success of 1996 Aravirta left his position in Jokerit to concentrate in his national team assistant coaching job. Aravirta returned to the SM-Liiga for the 2003-2004 season when he was hired to coach former 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...
rivals 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...
. Aravirta's first season was good as HIFK won bronze but his second season however was to be different. Aravirta was fired during the 2005 SM-liiga playoffs after very poor play from HIFK. Aravirta made his third return to SM-Liiga in 2006 when he replaced Jami Kauppi as the head coach of Pelicans
Pelicans (ice hockey)
Pelicans is an ice hockey team playing in the SM-liiga, and formed in 1996. They play in the city of Lahti, Finland at Isku Arena. The team is partially owned by retired NHL goaltender Pasi Nurminen.-Notable players:* Sean Avery* Jason Bonsignore...
(whom he has lifted from a team constantly fighting among the bottom teams to a force to be reckoned with. In the 2007-2008 season, Pelicans led the league for the greater part of the year). During his 10-season SM-Liiga coaching career Aravirta has won 2 championships, 3 silver medals and 2 bronze medals.
In January 2010, Aravirta signed on for Modo Hockey
MODO Hockey
Modo Hockey is a professional ice hockey club in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden. The club plays in Sweden's premier ice hockey league, the Elitserien. They were founded in 1921 and have won two Elitserien championships; in 1979 and 2007. The team's home arena is the Fjällräven Center since 2006...
in the Swedish Elitserien. His contract was not extended after the season, and he signed with 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:...
in November 2010.
International career
In 1992 Aravirta was hired as assistant coach in Finnish national men's ice hockey teamFinnish national men's ice hockey team
The Finnish men's national ice hockey team, or Leijonat / Lejonen , as it is called in Finland, is governed by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association...
Aravirta's first international success came in the 1994 Winter Olympics
1994 Winter Olympics
The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 12 to 27 February 1994 in and around Lillehammer, Norway. Lillehammer failed to win the bid for the 1992 event. Lillehammer was awarded the games in 1988, after having beat...
where Finland was 3rd, winning its second Olympic medal in ice hockey. Finland also placed 2nd in the 1994 Ice Hockey World Championships
1994 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
- Group 2 :- Quarterfinals :- Consolation Round 11-12 Place :- Semifinals :- Match for third place :- Final :-World Championship Group B :...
, losing to Canada in a shootout. In 1995 Finland won its first ever World Championship when the Finnish team defeated hosts of the 1995 Ice Hockey World Championship
1995 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
The 1995 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships was played in Stockholm and Gavle Sweden, from April 23rd to May the 7th, 1995. In the tournament finals, Finland won the gold medal by winning over Sweden 4-1 at the Globen arena in Stockholm. The Finnish goals were scored by Timo Jutila and Ville...
tournament, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
4–1.
The following World Championships in 1996
1996 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
- Group 2 :- Quarterfinals :- Consolation Round 11-12 Place :Austria was relegated to Group B.- Semifinals :- Match for third place :- Final :-World Championship Group B :...
and 1997 were disappointments as the Finnish team couldn't qualify for medal games (1997 Ice Hockey World Championships
1997 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
- Group 2 :- Second Round 1-6 Place :Teams that had played each other in the first round carried those results forward. First and second place played off for gold, third and fourth for bronze.- Consolation Round 7-12 Place :...
were in Finland). 1998 became a blockbuster season for Finnish ice hockey. First the Finns defeated Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
in the 1998 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey at the 1998 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey at the 1998 Winter Olympics was played at The Big Hat and Aqua Wing Arena in Nagano, Japan.-Men's tournament:The 1998 Olympic men's ice hockey tournament was the first in which professional players from the National Hockey League were allowed to participate, allowing national teams to...
to win their third Olympic medal, again a bronze one. 1998 Ice Hockey World Championships
1998 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
-World Championship Group C :Played March 22-28 in Budapest, Székesfehérvár and Dunaújváros.- Group 1 :- Group 2 :- Final Round 25-28 Place :Hungary was promoted to Group B.- Consolation Round 29-32 Place :...
featured Finland going against Sweden in the two game finals. Finland lost the first final game 1–0 and the second game was a 0–0 tie. Sweden won the World Championships and Aravirta took his first medal as the head coach of Finland (Curt Lindström
Curt Lindström
Curt "Curre" Lindström is a Swedish ice hockey coach.-Career on international level:He coached Team Finland from 1993 to 1997, winning Finland's first Ice Hockey World Championships gold medal in 1995, and a silver world championships medal as well as Olympic bronze...
retired after 1997 championships). Aravirta had a good start as the head coach of team Finland and more was to come. in 1999
1999 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
-World Championship Group C:Played at Eindhoven and Tilburg, Netherlands April 5–11. Yugoslavia was supposed to particpate in this tournament, but was prevented by the host Dutch government.-Group 1:-Group 2:-Final Round 25-28 Place:...
Finland was yet again in the finals but this time the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
won.
The 2000
2000 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
-World Championship Group A :Final standings# # # # # # # # # # # # # # # — relegated to Division I for 2001# -World Championship Group B :...
tournament was a step backwards; the Finnish team was beaten by Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
in the semifinals so Finland was to face Canada in the bronze game. Finland won the tight game 2–1 and got its first bronze medal in the World Championships. The 2001 World Championship tournament
2001 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
-Championship:Final standings# # # # # # # # # # # # # # — relegated to Division I for 2002# — relegated to Division I for 2002# - Group A :Group A was played in Grenoble, France between April 16 and April 22, 2001...
was Aravirta's last tournament in medals. Finland fought its way to the Finals and faced off with the Czech Republic. Finland led the game 2–0 but ended up losing 2–3 in overtime. The 2002 Olympic tournament
Ice hockey at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Ice hockey at the 2002 Winter Olympics were held at the E Center in West Valley City and Peaks Ice Arena in Provo, Utah. Both the men's and women's tournaments were won by Canada, defeating the host USA in both games.-Men:...
saw the Finnish team lose to Canada in the quarterfinals 2-1 and the 2002 World Championships
2002 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
The 2002 Men's Ice Hockey Championships were held between April 26 and May 11, 2002 in Gothenburg, Karlstad and Jönköping, Sweden.It was the 66th annual event, and was run by the International Ice Hockey Federation .- Championship :...
didn't have a better ending for Finns. Finland lost to Sweden in the Bronze game and the Swedes would avenge their defeat in 1995 (the 2002 tournament was played in Sweden). The 2003 Ice Hockey World Championships
2003 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
-Relegation round: avoids relegation by defeating 4-1 in the 2004 IIHF World Championship Far East Qualification game. and are demoted to Division I at the 2004 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships.-Scoring leaders:-Goaltending leaders:-Group A:...
marked the last tournament for Hannu Aravirta as the head coach of team Finland. Finland progressed through to the quarterfinals where it yet again faced Sweden. Finland had a comfortable 5–1 Lead after the first period but 2nd and 3rd periods of that game were catastrophic. Sweden won the game 6–5 and dropped Finland from the semifinals. After retiring from national team coaching Aravirta was the head coach of the Finnish Junior Ice Hockey Team
Finland men's national junior ice hockey team
The Finnish men's national under 20 ice hockey team is the national under-20 ice hockey team in Finland. The team represents Finland at the International Ice Hockey Federation's IIHF World U20 Championship.-2011 WJC roster:...
.
Achievements
- As National Team Assistant Coach: 1 Gold (1995), 1 Silver (1994) & 1 Olympic Bronze (1994).
- As National Team Head Coach: 3 Silvers (1998, 1999 & 2001), 1 Bronze (2000) & 1 Olympic Bronze (1998)