KalPa Naiset is a Finnish ice hockey team in the Naisten Mestis. Founded in 1990, the team plays at the Kuopion jäähalli in Kuopio, the largest city in Finland's eastern-central province of North Savo; serves as a secondary venue. It is operated by Juniori-KalPa ry, a club comprising many youth and recreational teams that is affiliated with but distinct from KalPa, a men's professional ice hockey team that plays in the Liiga and is operated by KalPa Hockey Oy.
KalPa played in the Finnish premier league during 1990 to 2001 and 2009 to 2026. They were the Aurora Borealis Cup runners-up in 2021, for which they earned Finnish Championship (SM) silver medals, and also won SM bronze five times, in 1995, 1996, 2017, 2023, and 2024.
History KalPa Naiset has been in continuous operation since the team made its debut in the 1988–89 season of the ('Women's 1st-division;' renamed Naisten Mestis in 2012). Despite attracting the highest attendance in the league across ten games played in 1988–89, the team finished the season in last place. Nana Lamberg led the team in scoring, with two goals, and Tuula Kuhmoinen and Marika Lentz tied for second, with one goal and one assist each.
The 1990–91 season marked KalPa's debut in the Naisten SM-sarja, the Finnish Championship league for women's ice hockey in Finland. They finished the regular season in a tie with SaiPa for last place, after both teams amassed just four points across twelve games. KalPa then lost a tie-breaker game to SaiPa and had to play a best-of-three relegation series against the first-placed team in Group A of the Naisten I-divisioona, JoKP. The series was pushed to game three before KalPa secured their place in the Naisten SM-sarja with a 4–3 victory over JoKP in the decisive match.
KalPa qualified for the Aurora Borealis Cup playoff final for the first time in 2020. They were set to face the reigning champions, Kiekko-Espoo, and were guaranteed at least a SM silver medal, which would have been the highest finish in team history to that point, when the playoffs were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic before the first game of the series could be played. With the cancellation of the season no Finnish Championship (SM) medals were awarded in 2020.
The team remained among the best performing teams in the league through the following season and were finally able to challenge Kiekko-Espoo for the Aurora Borealis Cup in the 2021 playoff finals. They fell short of the championship title but earned Finnish Championship silver medals as the finals runners-up and secured the best playoff finish in team history.
Voluntary relegation Juniori-KalPa ry, the team's parent club, announced in April 2026 that it had selected not to apply for an Auroraliiga license on behalf of KalPa Naiset for the 2026–27 season. The club asserted that the application was not submitted because internal assessment had determined that its operating association did not have the capacity to build and support a competitive Auroraliiga team due to financial limitations and concerns regarding operational changes required under the licensing system.
On 29 April, KalPa Naiset players posted a collective message on the team's Instagram account detailing steps they had taken to keep the team in the Auroraliiga and to highlight "questions about the [Juniori-KalPa] association's values, commitment to equality, and long-term desire to develop the club as a whole" raised by the decision. The players had asked Juniori-KalPa ry to apply for an Auroraliiga license with an exception allowing for team operations to be transferred during the season to a proposed association called KalPa Naiset ry. The team's proposal included a plan for the transfer of team operations under the leadership of an operations board that had already been mustered, a sponsorship group comprising more than 25 local businesses, and eighteen players committed to play for the Auroraliiga team.
The club responded via press release a day after the player message was posted, reiterating that the team would not play in the 2026–27 Auroraliiga season and asserting that the decision was motivated by a desire to create a stronger foundation for women's ice hockey in the future. The press release contained no information regarding how the association intended to strengthen its women's program or its rejection of the player proposal, nor did it respond to any of the specific questions raised in the player message.
Season-by-season results This is a partial list of the most recent seasons completed by KapPa.
Season League Regular season Postseason results Finish GP W OTW OTL L GF GA Pts Top scorer 2015–16 Naisten 6th 28711194712424 Jo. Juutilainen 32 (10+22) Lost quarterfinals to HPK, 2016–17 Naisten 3rd 28171461007257 T. Niskanen 36 (15+21) Won bronze medal game, (HPK) 2017–18 Naisten Liiga 6th 301421131129247 T. Niskanen 44 (20+24) Lost quarterfinals to Blues, 2018–19 Naisten Liiga 4th 301900111548357 T. Niskanen 79 (31+48) Lost bronze medal game to Kärpät, 2019–20 Naisten Liiga 3rd 30174231246461 E. Holopainen 62 (37+25) Won semifinals, 3–0 (Ilves)Finals cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic 2020–21 Naisten Liiga 2nd 25181061215156 E. Holopainen 64 (39+25) Finals runner-up, () 2021–22 Naisten Liiga 8th 3083217709632 Jo. Juutilainen 34 (9+25) Lost quarterfinals to , 2022–23 Naisten Liiga 2nd 36 29 2 2 3 197 65 93 E. Holopainen 75 (41+34) Won bronze medal game, (HPK) 2023–24 Naisten Liiga 4th 32 18 2 2 10 119 81 60 E. Holopainen 57 (32+25) Won bronze medal game, (HPK) 2024–25 Auroraliiga 6th 32 10 3 4 15 81 87 40 Jo. Juutilainen 27 (13+14) Lost quarterfinals to Kuortane, 2025–26 Auroraliiga 8th 32 4 2 6 20 50 114 22 E. Pekkarinen 14 (4+10) Lost quarterfinals to ,
Players and personnel 2025–26 roster
Coaching staff and team personnel Head coach: Artturi Rouhiainen Assistant coach: Jere Hakkarainen Assistant coach: Sami Tapaninen Goaltending coach: Joonas Rantanen Conditioning coach: Tiia Kukkonen Conditioning coach: Jaakko Uhlbäck Team managers: Mari Leskinen Equipment managers: Jarno Hakkarainen & Jari Hämäläinen
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 Tiina Ranne & Emma Ritari, 2019–20 Emma Ritari, 2020–21 Johanna Juutilainen, 2021–2024 Elli Mäkelä, 2024–25 Lunasa Sano, 2025–
Head coaches Mikko Miettinen, –2000 Seppo Tirronen, 2000– Marjo Voutilainen, 2016–2022 Mika Väärälä, 2022–2024 Artturi Rouhiainen, 2024–
Awards and honours Finnish Championship Aurora Borealis Cup Runners-up (1): 2021 Third Place (4) : 1995, 1996, 2017, 2023. 2024 Sources:
Individual awards
Riikka Nieminen Award (Player of the Year) 2023–24: Elisa Holopainen 2022–23: Elisa Holopainen 2020–21: Elisa Holopainen 2019–20: Tanja Niskanen 2018–19: Elisa Holopainen Katja Riipi Award (Best forward) 2023–24: Elisa Holopainen 2022–23: Elisa Holopainen 2021–22: Elisa Holopainen 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) 2022–23: Elisa Holopainen 2021–22: Matilda Nilsson 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) 2023–24: Johanna Juutilainen 2022–23: Jenna Hietala 2020–21: Johanna Juutilainen 2016–17: Tanja Niskanen Hannu Saintula Award (Coach of the Year) 2019–20: Marjo Voutilainen
Player of the Month November 2023: Elisa Holopainen November 2022: Elisa Holopainen September 2020: Elisa Holopainen September 2019: Matilda Nilsson
All-Stars First Team 2023–24: Elisa Holopainen (LW), Sanni Rantala (D) 2022–23: Elisa Holopainen (LW), Sanni Rantala (D) 2020–21: Elisa Holopainen (LW), Matilda Nilsson (RW) 2019–20: Elisa Holopainen (LW), Matilda Nilsson (RW), Tanja Niskanen (C) 2018–19: Elisa Holopainen (LW), Tanja Niskanen (C) 2014–15: Matilda Nilsson (F)
Second Team 2022–23: Jenna Kaila (LW), Adalmiina Makkonen (D), Tiina Ranne (G) 2020–21: Tiina Ranne (G) 2019–20: Tiina Ranne (G) 2018–19: Matilda Nilsson (RW) 2017–18: Elisa Holopainen (LW), Matilda Nilsson (RW)
Team records Various individual KalPa Naiset player records achieved through the end of the 2022–23 season.
Regular season Single-season records Most points: Tanja Niskanen, 79 points (29 games; 2018–19) Most points in a season, defenseman: Sanni Rantala, 39 points (30 games; 2022–23) Most goals: Elisa Holopainen, 41 goals (28 games; 2022–23) Most assists: Tanja Niskanen, 48 assists (29 games; 2018–19) Best points per game, over ten games played: Elisa Holopainen, 3.00 P/G (19 games; 2023–24) Marjo Voutilainen, 3.00 P/G (14 games; 1997–98)
Most penalty minutes: Kirsi Hänninen, 66 PIM (23 games; 1995–96) Best save percentage (Sv%), over five games played: Tiina Ranne, .942 Sv% (18 games; 2019–20) Best goals against average (GAA), over five games played: Jenna Juutilainen, 1.49 GAA (10 games; 2022–23) Most shutouts in a season: Tiina Ranne, 3 shutouts (accomplished in three different seasons) 20 games; 2022–23 18 games; 2018–19 14 games; 2020–21
Career records Most points: Tanja Niskanen, 488 points (301 games; 2006–2022) Most points, defenseman: Tanja Koljonen, 103 points (137 games; 2016–2023) Most goals: Tanja Niskanen, 257 goals (301 games; 2006–2022) Most assists: Johanna Juutilainen, 260 assists (348 games; 2009–2024) Best points per game, over 30 games played: Elisa Holopainen, 2.15 points per game (176 games; 2016–2024) Most penalty minutes: Salla Rantanen, 322 PIM (272 games; 2012–2023) Most games played, skater: Johanna Juutilainen, 348 games (2009–2024) Most games played, goaltender: Tiina Ranne, 130 games (2017–2024) Best save percentage, over twenty games played: Tiina Ranne, .921 Sv% (130 games; 2017–2024) Best career goals against average, over twenty games played: Tiina Ranne, 2.41 GAA (130 games; 2017–2024) Most shutouts: Tiina Ranne, 17 shutouts (130 games; 2017–2024)
All-time scoring leaders The top regular season point scorers in KalPa Naiset history, .
Note: Nat = Nationality; Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game; = 2024–25 KalPa player
Points Nat Player Pos GP G A Pts P/GF 301 257 231 488 1.62F 348 162 260 422 1.21 F 176 206 173 379 2.15F 189 164 140 304 1.61 F 272 97 112 209 0.77F 177 86 101 187 1.06 D 169 26 91 117 0.69 F 199 54 63 117 0.59 F 70 72 35 107 1.53 D 251 34 68 102 0.41 F 80 28 54 82 1.03 F58 46 35 81 1.40 D 135 34 47 81 0.60 F 120 29 46 75 0.63 F 49 38 36 74 1.51
Notable alumni
Elisa Holopainen, 2016–2021 & 2022–2024 Venla Hovi, 2012–2014 Kirsi Hänninen, 1995–96 Kati Kovalainen, 1993–1996 Rose Matilainen, 1993–1996 Terhi Mertanen, 1999–2001 Matilda Nilsson, 2014–2021 Tanja Niskanen, 2006–2008, 2009–2015 & 2016–2022 Oona Parviainen, 1993–1999 Tuula Puputti, 1992–1995 Isa Rahunen, 2006–2013 Sanni Rantala, 2022–2024 Saila Saari, 2020–21 Riikka Sallinen, 1995–96 Eve Savander, 2013–14 Marjo Voutilainen, 1995–2001 & 2010–2014
International player(s) Emma Hall, 2024–25 Nozomi Kiribuchi, 2015–16 Sarah Knee, 2022–23 Kokoro Ota, 2024–25
Bibliography Notes
References
External links Team information and statistics from EliteProspects.com and EuroHockey.com and HockeyArchives.info (in French)