2021 Aurora Borealis Cup playoffs

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2021 Aurora Borealis Cup playoffs
Naisten Liiga pudotuspelit 2021  (Finnish)
2021 Naisten Liiga playoffs
Tournament details
Dates3–25 March 2021
Tournament formatBest-of
Teams8
Defending championsKiekko-Espoo
Final positions
ChampionsKiekko-Espoo (15th title)
Runner-upKalPa Kuopio
Third placeHIFK Helsinki
Fourth placeIlves Tampere
Tournament statistics
Scoring leader(s)Elisa Holopainen (KalPa)
(16 points)
MVP

The 2021 Aurora Borealis Cup playoffs or the 2021 Naisten Liiga playoffs (Finnish: Naisten Liiga pudotuspelit 2021) is the playoff tournament of the 2020–21 Naisten Liiga season. The Naisten Liiga playoffs began on 3 March and the Aurora Borealis Cup was awarded to Kiekko-Espoo, the 38th Finnish Champion in women's ice hockey, on 25 March.

Playoff bracket[]

International travel restrictions and quarantine protocols due to the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated extended travel schedules for national teams competing in the 2021 IIHF Women's World Championship, originally scheduled to begin on 4 April 2021, and the Naisten Liiga playoff structure was modified to conclude a week earlier than expected to accommodate a training camp within the quarantine period for the Finnish national team. On 27 February, it was announced that, in order to name the Finnish Champion by 27 March at the latest, the quarterfinal series were to be reduced from the standard best-of-five system to best-of-three. The best-of-five semifinals and finals and the bronze medal match remain unchanged.[1][2]

In an unexpected twist, on 4 March the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) announced that the 2021 Women's Worlds were to be postponed until 6–16 May 2021.[3] As the first games of the Naisten Liiga quarterfinals had already been played the day before, the playoff structure announced on 27 February remained in place following announcement of the postponement.

  Quarterfinal                    
  1 Kiekko-Espoo 2  
  8 Team Kuortane 0   Semifinal
      1 Kiekko-Espoo 3  
  Quarterfinal   4 Ilves Tampere 1  
  4 Ilves Tampere 2
  5 HPK Hämeenlinna 0         Finals
              1st place, gold medalist(s) Kiekko-Espoo 3
  Quarterfinal             2nd place, silver medalist(s) KalPa Kuopio 1
  2 KalPa Kuopio 2      
  7 Kärpät Oulu 0   Semifinal   Bronze medal game
      2 KalPa Kuopio 3   3rd place, bronze medalist(s) HIFK Helsinki 2
  Quarterfinal   3 HIFK Helsinki 2     SF4 Ilves Tampere 1
  3 HIFK Helsinki 2
  6 TPS Turku 0  
As of 25 March 2021

Quarterfinals[]

The best-of-three quarterfinals (Finnish: Puolivälierät) began on 3 March 2021 and were scheduled to be continued on 6 March with a third 7 March, if necessary. Home ice advantage was granted to the higher seeded teams for the first and potential third games. Each of the four quarterfinal series concluded in two game sweeps in favor of the higher seeded teams.

(1) Kiekko-Espoo vs. (8) Team Kuortane[]

Kiekko-Espoo earned the first seed after winning the regular season title with 2.41 points per game, marking the team’s third consecutive regular season victory, and finished with 65 points in 27 games.[4] Team Kuortane defeated RoKi Rovaniemi in the last game on the last day of the season to claim second place in the lower division series and secure the eighth seed.[5] The teams last met in the 2019–20 Aurora Borealis Cup semifinals, which Kiekko-Espoo won in three games.[6] They faced one another only once during the 2020–21 season, a 5–3 victory for Kiekko-Espoo on 14 November 2020.

Game times in Eastern European Time (UTC+02:00)

3 March 2021
19:05		Kiekko-Espoo4–2
(2–2, 2–0, 0–0)		Team KuortaneTapiolan harjoitusareena, Espoo
6 March 2021
15:30		Team Kuortane0–6Kiekko-EspooKuortaneen jäähalli, Kuortane

(2) KalPa vs. (7) Kärpät[]

KalPa Kuopio secured the second seed after completing the regular season with 2.24 points per game (56 points in 25 games), propelled by the elite production of forwards Elisa Holopainen, who scored 32 goals and 22 assists (54 points) in 18 games of the qualifiers to rank first in every scoring metric of the series, and Matilda Nilsson, the regular season goal scoring champion, who tallied 8 goals in 7 regular season (upper division) games.[4] Kärpät Oulu topped the lower division standings to secure the seventh seed with 24 points in 10 games. The teams last met in the 2019–20 Aurora Borealis Cup semifinals, which Kiekko-Espoo won in three games.[6] KalPa won both games in this season's series during the Naisten Liiga qualifiers.

Game times in Eastern European Time (UTC+02:00)

3 March 2021
18:30		KalPa Kuopio3–2
(2–1, 1–0, 0–1)		Kärpät OuluNiiralan Monttu, Kuopio
6 March 2021 (2021-03-06)
12:30		Kärpät Oulu4–5
(0-2, 1-1, 3-1, 0-1)		KalPa KuopioRaksilan jäähalli, Oulu

(3) HIFK vs. (6) TPS[]

Having gained promotion to the Naisten Liiga just two seasons prior, HIFK Helsinki continued their meteoric rise to finish third in the regular season with 2.11 points per game (57 points in 27 games). TPS Turku concluded the season with 1.44 points per game (39 points in 27 games) to finish sixth in the regular season and secure the team's first appearance in the playoffs – an impressive return after narrowly avoiding relegation in the previous season.[7] HIFK won three of four matchups during the 2020–21 season. HIFK forward Michaela Pejzlová, the regular season scoring champion, scored 9 points in the season series with TPS.

Game times in Eastern European Time (UTC+02:00)

3 March 2021 (2021-03-03)
19:00		HIFK Helsinki3–0
(2-0, 1-0, 0-0)		TPS TurkuMalmin jäähalli, Helsinki
6 March 2021
13:20		TPS Turku2–4
(0-1, 0-1, 2-2)		HIFK HelsinkiKupittaan jäähalli, Turku

(4) Ilves vs. (5) HPK[]

Ilves Tampere earned the fourth seed after finishing the season with 47 points in 28 games for a 1.68 points percentage and HPK Hämeenlinna earned the fifth seed after finishing the season with 46 points in 29 games for a 1.59 points percentage. This was the first quarterfinal match-up between the two teams since 2015 and their fourth playoff match-up in ten seasons. HPK won two of the three previous series, including defeating Ilves in the 2011 Aurora Borealis Cup final. HPK won three of four games in this year's season series.[8][9][10][11]

Game times in Eastern European Time (UTC+02:00)

3 March 2021 (2021-03-03)
19:15		Ilves Tampere1–0
(1-0, 0-0, 0-0)		HPK HämeenlinnaTesoman jäähalli, Tampere
6 March 2021
14:00		HPK Hämeenlinna0–2
(0-0, 0-0, 0-2)		Ilves TampereJääliikuntakeskus Hakio, Hämeenlinna

Semifinals[]

(1) Kiekko-Espoo vs. (4) Ilves[]

Game times in Eastern European Time (UTC+02:00)

9 March 2021
19:05		Kiekko-Espoo2–0
(0-0, 1-0, 1-0)		Ilves TampereTapiolan harjoitusareena, Espoo
11 March 2021
19:15		Ilves Tampere0–2
(0-2, 0-0, 0-0)		Kiekko-EspooTesoman jäähalli, Tampere
13 March 2021
17:45		Kiekko-Espoo2–3 SO
(1-0, 1-2, 0-0, 0-0, 1-0)		Ilves TampereTapiolan harjoitusareena, Espoo
14 March 2021
12:15		Ilves Tampere1–2
(1-0, 0-1, 0-1)		Kiekko-EspooTesoman jäähalli, Tampere

(2) KalPa vs. (3) HIFK[]

Game times in Eastern European Time (UTC+02:00)

9 March 2021
13:00		KalPa Kuopio3–7
(1-3, 2-2, 0-2)		HIFK HelsinkiNiiralan Monttu, Kuopio
11 March 2021
19:15		HIFK Helsinki5–2
(1-0, 2-0, 2-2)		KalPa KuopioMalmin jäähalli, Helsinki
13 March 2021
12:00		KalPa Kuopio6–2
(2-2, 1-0, 3-0)		HIFK HelsinkiNiiralan Monttu, Kuopio
14 March 2021
16:00		HIFK Helsinki1–3
(0-0, 1-2, 0-1)		KalPa KuopioMalmin jäähalli, Helsinki
17 March 2021
18:30		KalPa Kuopio3–1
(0-0, 2-0, 1-1)		HIFK HelsinkiNiiralan Monttu, Kuopio

Bronze medal game[]

[12]

March 20, 2021 (2021-03-20)
15:30		HIFK Helsinki2–1
(2-1, 0-0, 0-0)		Ilves TampereMalmin jäähalli, Helsinki

Finals[]

Game times in Eastern European Time (UTC+02:00)

20 March 2021 (2021-03-20)
12:45		Kiekko-Espoo2–0
(1-0, 1-0, 0-0)		KalPa KuopioTapiolan harjoitusareena, Espoo
21 March 2021 (2021-03-21)
13:30		KalPa Kuopio0–2
(0-0, 0-1, 0-1)		Kiekko-EspooNiiralan Monttu, Kuopio
23 March 2021 (2021-03-23)
18:45		Kiekko-Espoo2–5
(0-4, 2-1, 0-0)		KalPa KuopioTapiolan harjoitusareena, Espoo
25 March 2021 (2021-03-25)
18:30		KalPa Kuopio2–3
(0-1, 0-1, 2-1)		Kiekko-EspooNiiralan Monttu, Kuopio

Statistics[]

Scoring leaders

The following players were led the league in playoff points at the conclusion of the playoffs on 25 March 2021.[13]

Player Team GP G A Pts PIM
1 Elisa Holopainen KalPa 11 12 9 21 6
2 Tanja Niskanen KalPa 11 6 10 16 14
3 HIFK 8 7 3 10 2
4 Annina Rajahuhta K-Espoo 10 5 5 10 8
5 Michaela Pejzlová HIFK 8 3 7 10 8
6 Saila Saari KalPa 11 3 7 10 4
7 Emilia Vesa K-Espoo 10 4 5 9 27
8 K-Espoo 10 5 3 8 4
9 Nelli Laitinen K-Espoo 10 1 6 7 6
10 KalPa 11 0 7 7 2
11 Emmanuelle Passard HIFK 8 5 1 6 8

Leading goaltenders

The following goaltenders lead the league in playoff save percentage at the conclusion of the playoffs on 25 March 2021, while playing at least one third of matches.[14]

Player Team GP TOI W L SA GA SO SV% GA60
1 Meeri Räisänen HPK 2 117:30 0 2 54 2 0 .964 1.02
2 Anni Keisala Ilves 7 436:27 2 4 251 10 2 .962 1.37
3 K-Espoo 10 588:19 8 1 250 10 5 .962 1.02
4 Kuortane 2 74:56 0 1 64 5 0 .928 4.00
5 HIFK 8 476:08 5 3 225 18 1 .926 2.27
6 Tiina Ranne KalPa 11 659:11 6 5 331 29 0 .919 2.64
7 TPS 2 115:11 0 2 62 6 0 .912 3.13
8 Kärpät 2 127:35 0 2 49 8 0 .860 3.76
9 Kuortane 2 44:34 0 1 29 5 0 .853 6.73

References[]

  1. ^ "Naisten Liigan pudotuspeleihin muutoksia - Mestari selvillä viimeistään 27.3". leijonat.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Ice Hockey Association. 27 February 2021. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
  2. ^ "Naisten Liigan pudotuspelijärjestelmään muutoksia – puolivälierät pelataan paras kolmesta -järjestelmällä". Jatkoaika.com (in Finnish). 1 March 2021. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
  3. ^ Merk, Martin (4 March 2021). "Women's Worlds moved to May". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  4. ^ a b Holma, Joel (28 February 2021). "Kiekko-Espoo Naisten Liigan jatkosarjan ykkönen – nämä joukkueet taistelevat mestaruudesta". Yle (in Finnish). Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  5. ^ Karjalainen, Timo (28 February 2021). "Kuortaneelle pitempi korsi pudotuspelikenraalista – RoKi karsintasarjaan". Jatkoaika.com (in Finnish). Retrieved 2 March 2021.
  6. ^ a b Estola-Haaranen, Kaisa (3 March 2021). "Naisten Liigan pudotuspelit pakattiin tiiviiseen nippuun – KalPan Nikkari-kasvatti ja K-Espoon Ahma-kasvatti ovat olleet hyvässä vedossa ja odottavat innolla loppurypistystä". Aamuposti (in Finnish). Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  7. ^ Leppäsyrjä, Juusi (3 March 2021). "TPS:n naiset eivät kuvia kumartele kiekkoliigan pudotuspeleissä – "Mitään muuta tavoitetta kuin mestaruus ei voi olla"". Turun Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  8. ^ Salo, Tapani (2 March 2021). "Ilves kohtaa HPK:n naisten kiekkoliigan puolivälierissä – Joukkue luottaa omiin vahvuuksiinsa ja Anni Keisalan torjuntoihin". Aamulehti (in Finnish). Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  9. ^ Lainesalo, Joonas (28 February 2021). "HPK viidenneksi naisten Liigassa – Kerho kohtaa puolivälierissä Ilveksen". Hämeen Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  10. ^ Koro, Juuso (3 March 2021). "Ilves avausvoittoon vähämaalisessa pudotuspeliavauksessa". Jatkoaika (in Finnish). Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  11. ^ Virtanen, Samuli (3 March 2021). "Ilves tarrasi välieräpaikkaan – HPK-kiekkonaisten kausi katkolla viikonloppuna". Hämeen Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  12. ^ Ruotsalainen, Annu (20 March 2021). "Helsingissä juhlitaan pronssimitalia 14 vuoden tauon jälkeen – HIFK voitti Ilveksen tiukassa taistossa 2–1". Jatkoaika (in Finnish). Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  13. ^ "2020–21 Naisten Liiga, pudotuspelit – Pelaajatilastot" (XLS). tulospalvelu.leijonat.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Ice Hockey Association. 25 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
  14. ^ "2020–21 Naisten Liiga, pudotuspelit – Maalivahtitilastot" (XLS). tulospalvelu.leijonat.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Ice Hockey Association. 25 March 2020. Retrieved 26 March 2020.

External links[]

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