Tappara (; Finnish for " Battle axe") is a Finnish professional ice hockey team playing in the Liiga. They play at '' Tampere Deck Arena'' in Tampere, Finland. The team has won 18 Finnish league championships (1959, 1961, 1964, 1975, 1977, 1979, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 2003, 2016, 2017, 2022). The team continued the traditions of TBK, who won three national championships in a row in 1953, 1954 and 1955.

Team history

Early days and the transition from TBK to Tappara

The predecessor of Tappara TBK (Tammerfors Bollklubb) was established in 1932 by the Tampere Swedish School (Tampereen Ruotsalainen Yhteiskoulu) as its own sports club. After winning the Finnish championship in 1953, 1954 and 1955. In 1955, the TBK Ice-hockey department founded Tappara to as its new club to make it more accessible to non-Swedish locals and give it opportunity to grow as a club, at the same time the Ice-Hockey division of TBK stopped as an Icehockey club at the highest competitive level. Most of the players transferred from TBK to Tappara. Tappara used TBK's colors and got their place in the top league. Tappara played its first official game in the same year, 1955. The transition was led by team president

Harry Lindblad Harry Gustaf Lindblad (30 July 1912 – 2 February 1984) was a Finnish ice hockey administrator, coach and player. He served as the Finnish Ice Hockey Association president for 18 years, after five years as its vice-president. During this time, ...

First period of success as Tappara (1956–1964)

Tappara went on to win three championships (1959, 1961, and 1964), three second places (1958, 1960, and 1963), and three third places (1956, 1957, and 1962) in just nine years. Their winning streak was followed by a more silent period, with Tappara even playing one season (1965–1966) at the second highest level, gaining immediate promotion back to the top flight. In 1965, an indoor arena

Tampereen jäähalli Tampere Ice Stadium ( fi, Tampereen jäähalli, often called ''Hakametsä'') is an indoor sports arena in Tampere, Finland. It is primarily used for ice hockey, and it was the former home arena of Ilves and Tappara of the Finnish Liiga, until aft ...

was built in Hakametsä to be the home arena of Tappara and their local rivals, Ilves and Koo-Vee.

1965 World Ice Hockey Championships The 1965 Ice Hockey World Championships took place in Hakametsä, Tampere, Finland, 3–15 March. Eight teams took part, each playing each other once. The Soviets became world champions for the fifth time, winning all of their games. This also ...

were also held there in the same year.

Second period of success (1975–1988)

Tappara fans had to wait until the mid-seventies until Tappara started to be successful again, thanks to some legendary players such as the goalkeeper

Antti Leppänen Antti Kalervo Leppänen (November 23, 1947 – August 5, 2015) was a professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the SM-liiga. Born in Tampere, he played for Tappara. He was inducted into the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame in 1990. Referen ...

and the defender Pekka Marjamäki. The bronze medals in 1973 and silver medals in 1974 were followed by Finnish championship in 1975. This successful period was even longer than the first period of glory in the 1950s and early sixties. Tappara also won the Finnish championships in 1977, 1979, 1982, 1984, and the long streak ended by winning three consecutive championships in 1986–1988. Many fans regard the Tappara team of the late 1980s – coached by Rauno Korpi – as their strongest of all time. Behind the senior players such as Timo Susi and

Erkki Lehtonen Erkki Tapani Lehtonen (born January 9, 1957 in Tampere, Finland) is a retired professional ice hockey player who played for Tappara in the SM-liiga. He was inducted into the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame The Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame is house ...

, the likes of Teppo Numminen (a long-term defender in NHL) and

Janne Ojanen Janne Juhani Ojanen (born April 9, 1968) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey player who is the all-time leading scorer in Finland's SM-liiga with 799 points. He spent the majority of his career playing for SM-liiga team Tappara. Play ...

(Tappara icon) led the way as new talented youngsters. In 1988, the

Finland national team Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bo ...

gained its first success by winning the Olympic silver medal in Calgary, and Tappara players formed a substantial part of the Finnish team. Tappara players, Erkki Lehtonen and Janne Ojanen, were the goal scorers for Finland in the decisive win against the Soviet Union.

Recent days and success in mid-2010s

During the 1990s, Tappara did not gain any notable success besides finishing third in the league in spring 1990. In 1992, the once so mighty team even had to fight for its place at the top level in relegation playoffs against Oulun Kärpät. A glimpse of glory was, however, achieved on the international level, as Tappara player Timo Jutila captained the Finnish national team to win the ice hockey world championship in 1995. In the early 2000s, Tappara played some good seasons, winning silver medals in both 2001 and 2002. In 2003 – to the surprise of many – Tappara won the Finnish championship, coached by

Jukka Rautakorpi Jukka Tapio Rautakorpi (born December 17, 1963 in Kauhajoki, Finland) is a Finnish ice hockey coach. Career Shortly after his playing career ended, Rautakorpi began his coaching career starting out with the under-16 team of JYP Jyväskylä. A ...

. After that, Tappara reached 3rd place in the top league in 2008 but that achievement was followed by some difficult seasons. Tappara qualified only once to the playoffs between 2009 and 2012. All changed in the 2012–13 season when Tappara made it to the finals for the first time since the 2003 championship, but lost to Ässät. In 2014 and 2015 Tappara came even closer to the title. Both final series were decided in a decisive seventh game and both of the games Kärpät won in overtime. In 2016, Tappara finally won the championship after beating HIFK in the finals. In 2017, Tappara won the regular season for the first time since 2002, advanced to the finals for the fifth time in a row and won another championship against KalPa. In 2018, Tappara reached the finals for a record-breaking 6th year in a row, but lost to Kärpät in 6 games. The great streak of final appearances came to an end in 2019 when HPK defeated Tappara in the semi-finals in six games. The medal streak continued however, as Tappara won the bronze medal game against HIFK.

Home arena

Tappara has played their home games in

since it was built in 1965. The local rival Ilves used the same arena. The arena was the first indoor arena in Finland and it is located in the neighborhood of Hakametsä. Originally the capacity was 10,200 spectators, but it has declined in various renovations over the years. In its current form, the arena accommodates 7,300 spectators. A new arena was built in the city center of Tampere on a covered rail yard. The new Nokia arena opened in December 2021. The arena is the main stage of the 2022 Ice Hockey World Championships. The old rink continues as a venue for indoor sports. The ice-hockey club KooVee and the junior teams of Tappara and Ilves will use this location for official games.

Current roster

Updated December 11, 2022.

Notable players

* Seppo Ahokainen * Teemu Aalto * Nick Angell * Niklas Bäckström * Aleksander Barkov *

Aleksander Barkov Jr. Aleksander Aleksandrovich "Sasha" Barkov (russian: Александр Александрович Барков; born 2 September 1995) is a Finland, Finnish professional ice hockey centre (ice hockey), centre and Captain (ice hockey), captain of ...

* André Benoit * Luciano Borsato * Justin Braun * Alain Côté *

Dale Clarke Dale Clarke (born March 23, 1978) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman. He is currently playing for Tappara in SM-liiga. Clarke played three games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the St. Louis Blues. He previously played in Fi ...

Thomas Draper Thomas Percy Draper CBE KC (29 December 1864 – 11 July 1946) was an Australian lawyer, politician, and judge. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1907 to 1911 and again from 1917 to 1921, and was attorney-g ...

* Jonas Enlund * Theoren Fleury * Kurtis Foster * Josh Green *

Jari Grönstrand Jari Grönstrand (born November 14, 1962) is a Finnish retired professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League 1986 and 1991, and in the SM-liiga between 1982 and 1986, and again from 1991 to 1994. He played for Tappara, ...

* Janne Grönvall *

Steve Guolla Stephen K. Guolla (born March 15, 1973) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League for the San Jose Sharks, Tampa Bay Lightning, Atlanta Thrashers and the New Jersey Devils. Guolla is a 2016 Mic ...

Hannu Haapalainen Hannu Wilhelm Haapalainen (February 28, 1951 – November 5, 2011) was a Finnish professional ice hockey player who played in the SM-liiga. He played for Tappara and KooVee and won five league championships. He was inducted into the Finnish ...

* Jannik Hansen *

Greg Hawgood Gregory William Hawgood (born August 10, 1968) is a Canadians, Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers, Philadelphia Flyers, Florida Panthers, Pittsb ...

Martti Jarkko Martti Jarkko (born November 26, 1953 in Tampere, Finland) is a Finnish retired professional ice hockey player who played in the SM-liiga. He played for Tappara and TPS in Finland and Iserlohner EC in Germany. He was inducted into the Finnish H ...

* Timo Jutila * Hannu Kamppuri * Pertti Koivulahti * Petri Kontiola * Lasse Korhonen *

Jiří Kučera Jiří Kučera (born March 28, 1966) is a Czech professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is currently the head coach of HC Litvinov. During his playing career he played for HC Plzen and Dukla Jihlava in his home country and for Tappa ...

* Patrik Laine *

Pekka Laksola Pekka Laksola (born May 25, 1964) is a Finnish ice hockey coach. He played a long career for Tappara of the Finnish SM-liiga and later also for Berlin Capitals in Germany and Hockey Club de Reims in France. He also represented Finland men's na ...

Jori Lehterä Jori Jonatan Lehterä (born 23 December 1987) is a Finnish professional ice hockey player currently playing for Tappara of the Liiga. A centreman, he was selected by the St. Louis Blues in the third round, 65th overall, of the 2008 NHL ...

* Tero Lehterä * Mika Lehto * Antero Lehtonen *

* Mikko Leinonen *

* Lasse Litma * Mikko Luoma * Toni Lydman * Pekka Marjamäki * Jussi Markkanen * Jiří Marusak *

Markus Mattsson Markus Rainer Mattsson (born July 30, 1957) is a former professional ice hockey goaltender. He was one of the first goaltenders in the NHL from Finland. He is also the goalie who ended Wayne Gretzky's 51-game point streak in 1983–84. Markus h ...

Derek Mayer Derek Christopher Mayer (born May 21, 1967) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former professional ice hockey player. He played 17 games for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was also a member of the Ca ...

Roman Meluzín Roman Meluzín (born 17 June 1972) is a Czech former professional ice hockey player who played with HC Slovan Bratislava in the Slovak Extraliga. Previously he played for HC Zlín, Tappara Tampere, HC Oceláři Třinec and HC Kometa Brno ...

Reijo Mikkolainen Reijo Kalevi Mikkolainen (born May 14, 1964 in Pirkkala, Finland) is a retired professional ice hockey player who played in the SM-liiga. He won a silver medal with the Finland team at the 1988 Winter Olympics. He played for Tappara, Ilves, and TP ...

* Tuukka Mäntylä *

Jason Muzzatti Jason Mark Muzzatti (born February 3, 1970) is a Canadian-Italian former professional ice hockey goaltender, and the current goaltending coach for the Carolina Hurricanes. He played 62 games in the National Hockey League between 1993 and 1998 for ...

Esko Niemi Esko Ilmari Niemi (b. 11 June 1934 in Tampere, Finland - d. 8 November 2013) was a professional ice hockey player who played in the SM-liiga. He played for Tappara and TPS. He was inducted into the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame The Finnish Ho ...

* Ville Nieminen * Mika Noronen *

Kalevi Numminen Veijo Kalevi Numminen (born 31 January 1940 in Tampere, Finland) is a retired professional ice hockey player who played in the SM-liiga. He played for Tappara. He was inducted into the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame in 1986. Numminen has also coach ...

* Teppo Numminen *

Stefan Öhman Stefan Öhman (born 5 May 1976) is a Swedish-Finnish hockey coach and former professional forward. He spent several years in the Finnish SM-liiga, playing for Tappara and Espoo Blues. He also played for Björklöven and Modo Hockey in the Swedish ...

* Mike O'Neill * Olli Palola * Jukka Peltola * Pasi Petriläinen *

Lasse Pirjetä Lasse Pirjetä (born April 4, 1974) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey forward. He represented several teams in the Finnish SM-liiga, Frölunda HC in the Swedish Elitserien and the Columbus Blue Jackets and Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL. ...

* Esa Pirnes *

Jukka Porvari Jukka Veikko Porvari (born January 19, 1954, in Tampere, Finland) is a Finnish retired professional ice hockey player who played in the SM-liiga and National Hockey League (NHL). He played for Tappara, TPS, New Jersey Devils, and Colorado Rocki ...

Pasi Puistola Pasi Puistola (born September 16, 1978) is a Finnish professional ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belo ...

* Andrew Raycroft * Matti Rintakoski * Anssi Salmela * Pekka Saravo * Bedřich Ščerban * Jaromír Šindel *

Mike Stapleton Michael Patrick Stapleton (born May 5, 1966) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played fourteen seasons in the National Hockey League from 1986 until 2001. Throughout his career Stapleton played for the Chicago Blackhawks, Pit ...

* Timo Susi * Pertti Valkeapää *

Ari Vallin Ari Vallin (born March 21, 1978) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey defenceman. In summer 2015, he was transferred from Oulun Kärpät to KooKoo. In the 2003–2004 SM-liiga The SM-liiga (marketed as just Liiga from 2013 on), (Finni ...

* Jarkko Varvio *

Vesa Viitakoski Vesa Ilmari Viitakoski (born February 13, 1971 in Lappeenranta, Finland) is a former professional ice hockey player. Career Viitakoski started his professional career in his home town, Lappeenranta, playing for two seasons in the local club, Sai ...

File:Tbk45.jpg, TBK in 1945 File:Esko Niemi.jpg, Esko Niemi File:Ojanen Janne Tappara 2008 1.jpg, Janne Ojanen File:Tuukka Mäntylä.jpg, Tuukka Mäntylä File:Ville Nieminen.jpg, Ville Nieminen File:Jori Lehterä.jpg, Jori Lehterä File:Christian Heljanko Tappara 2021.jpg, Christian Heljanko File:Patrik Laine.jpg, Patrik Laine

Honours

Champions

* SM-liiga Kanada-malja ''(11)'': 1977, 1979, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 2003, 2016, 2017, 2022 * SM-sarja Kanada-malja ''(7)'': 1953, 1954, 1955, 1959, 1961, 1964, 1975 * Finnish Cup ''(1)'': 1957

Runners-up

* SM-liiga ''(13)'': (1958, 1960, 1963, 1974, 1976, 1978, 1981, 2001, 2002, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018 * SM-sarja ''(4)'': 1958, 1960, 1963, 1974 * SM-liiga ''(3)'': 1990, 2008, 2019 * SM-sarja ''(9)'': 1946, 1947, 1948, 1950, 1951, 1956, 1957, 1962, 1973 * Finnish Cup ''(2)'': 1964, 1966

International

* Nordic Trophy ''(1)'':

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

* Champions Hockey League ''(1)'': 2021–22 * IIHF European Cup ''(1)'': 1980 * IIHF European Cup ''(2)'': 1983, 1988 *

Tampere Cup Tampere Cup is an annual ice hockey tournament held in Tampere, Finland. It is hosted by two local teams, Tappara and Ilves. The most successful team is one of the hosts, Tappara with four titles. Metallurg Magnitogorsk has won the tournament th ...

''(6)'': 1996, 1999, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2022

Retired numbers

*2 -

*3 - Pekka Marjamäki *7 - Timo Jutila *8 -

*10 - Timo Susi *12 -

Head coaches

* Jaakko Hietaniemi 1937-1950 * Jarl Ohlson 1950–61, 1965–66 *

Aulis Hirvonen Aulis may refer to: * Aulis (given name) * Aulis (ancient Greece), an ancient Greek town in Boeotia, traditionally the port from which the Greek army set sail for the Trojan War * Avlida, a modern Greek town, traditionally identified with ancient ...

1961-63 * Erkki Hytönen 1963-65 * Reijo Ojanen 1966-67 * Matti Haapaniemi 1967-68 * Esko Luostarinen 1968-1970 *

1970–1979, 1991-1992 * Rauno Korpi 1979–1982, 1985–1991, 1997-1998 *

Olli Hietanen Olli is a Dutch children's book character and a stuffed toy. The character Olli was created in 2004 by Dutch designer and film director Hein Mevissen and writer Diederiekje Bok as a character for a bottled mineral water. Olli was one of the many ...

1982-1984 *

1984 * Jorma Kurjenmäki 1984-1985 *

Pertti Hasanen Pertti is a Finnish masculine given name.http://verkkopalvelu.vrk.fi/Nimipalvelu/default.asp?L=1 nimipalvelu Notable people *Pertti Ahlqvist, blues musician *Pertti Haikonen, footballer * Pertti Hasanen, ice hockey goalkeeper * Pertti Honkanen, ...

1992-1993 * Boris Majorov 1993-1994 *

Kaj Matalamäki Kaj may refer to: Places in Iran * Kaj, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari * Kaj, Hamadan * Kaj, Isfahan * Kaj, Qom * Kaj, Razavi Khorasan * Kaj, Sistan and Baluchestan Other uses * Kaj River, a river of Afghanistan * Kaj (name) * A fictional frog on the D ...

1994–1995, 2005 *

1995–1997, 1999–2003, 2005–2006, 2012–2014, 2017- * Ismo Läntinen 1998-1999 *

Mika Saarinen Mika is a given name, a nickname and a surname. Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People known just as Mika * Mika (singer) (born 1983), Lebanese-born British singer-songwriter Michael Penniman, Jr. * Mika (footb ...

2003-2005 *

Mikko Saarinen Mikko Saarinen (4 April 1946 – 29 December 2022) was a Finnish boxer. He competed in the men's light middleweight event at the 1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and c ...

2005, 2008-2010 * Rauli Urama 2006-2008 * Sami Hirvonen 2010-2011 * Risto Dufva 2011-2012 * Jussi Tapola 2014-2017

References

External links

* {{SM-liiga Sport in Tampere Liiga teams 1932 establishments in Finland 1955 establishments in Finland Liiga