Pekka Virta analyzes Antti Pennanen’s position.
The Lions will face the Czech Republic in their quarter-final match on Thursday.
The bet of the match is simple: with a win, Finland will play for World Cup medals, with a loss, one of the strongest lion teams in recent years will be eliminated from the tournament.
The last time Leijonat advanced to the top four in the World Cup was in 2022.
If Finland bows on Thursday, the team will be the head coach Antti Pennanen missed the quarter-final stage three times in a row in the era.
Iltalehti’s ice hockey expert Pekka Virta pondered in the advance studio whether the head coach’s position should be considered if Leijonat loses, even though Finland won the Olympic bronze medal in the best-versus-best-tournament in February.
– Now it was a bit of a bummer. First of all, it’s hard for me to believe that Finland would lose a quarterfinal game, Virta begins.
– I think there has now been a small-scale panic attack, and in Finland it has pretty much gone from one extreme to the other. After the four-nation tournament, Finnish ice hockey was a disaster, and the World Cup has been frozen out of the semi-finals.
Antti Pennanen’s medal account at the World Championships has yet to be opened. At the Olympics, he led the Lions to bronze. Pasi Liesimaa
The expert points out that even at the Olympics, Leijonat was very close to both great disappointment and great success. Switzerland was knocked out by Finland in the quarter-finals, but Finland came close to pulling off a surprise against Canada in the semi-finals.
He reminds us how challenging the job of being the head coach of the Lions is.
– Every time the head coach of the national team is changed, it is noticed that it is such a hard wash. No Jukka A noble one succeeded immediately. No one has succeeded in it right away.
Curt Lindstrom won World Cup gold in his second World Cup, Jukka Jalonen’s first world championship as head coach came in his third World Cup wins.
– There is always learning and getting used to the intense pressure. The head coach is constantly under suspicion.
Changed Pennanen
Virta has noticed that head coach Pennanen and the rest of Finland’s coaching team are now completely different from, for example, a year ago.
Pennanen’s personality and gestures are also more relaxed than before.
– I always believe that work teaches its creator. We are seeing a completely different type of coaching right now, right down to the head coach. The essence is calmer.
Virta sees that the Ice Hockey Association does not fire head coaches.
– The people fire the head coaches, and the union hires, right? To put it bluntly. Strong enough external pressure will separate head coaches.
The expert believes that there is no need to speculate at Pennanen station.
– If we talk in a sporting way: let’s take this as a good success, there will be peace of mind for the coaching and the journey will continue.
Pennanen’s contract runs until the end of the 2026–27 season.
Iltalehti hockey expert Pekka Virta. Maarit Pohjanpalo
