Helsinki, Riga Withdraw From KHL for 2022-23

Guess Jokerit might rejoin the Liiga (Finnish Elite League) While Dinamo could join the Latvia Hockey Higher League (or the Optibet Hokeja Liga).

In the future, most likely, but they will not join the Finnish League just like that. It was such a big blow when they sold their souls to the russian mafia in 2013 and because of Finland’s and Russia’s entangled history, people are not willing to let them join as if nothing happened. If they want to play in the top league they need to start from lower divisions and climb back to earn their spot.

It’s funny because the owner of the club sold them to get that Russian money and the club thought ”there is no coming back and we play in a better league so it doesn’t matter what people in Finland thinks about us” and now they are begging the league to let them back in

• This reply was modified 2 years, 11 months ago by SuperSoynic_Speed.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 11 months ago by SuperSoynic_Speed.

There’s six levels, but if Jokerit returns to Finnish hockey leagues they would most likely start from second or third highest, simply because any lower than that is such a shitty level.

European sport systems (not only hockey) are pretty different from American ones. We don’t have drafts, salary caps, college leagues etc, rather the different clubs have their own u20, u18, u16 etc teams and people gradually go up and up with their age.

Obviously talented individuals can directly jump from let’s say u18 to the men’s team, and they are usually the ones getting drafted to the NHL or NBA or whatever. Football/soccer is ofc different as no one wants to play their prime in the MLS but in Europe.

So it is a “whom can we recruit/sign before anyone else” mentality and blackmail (transfer fees) to move players between different “clubs”.  That is what I see the European Sports scene looks like.

basically yeah. Trades aren’t that usual, it’s more about buying out contracts or signing free agents.

When it comes to youth players, they play for the youth team closest to where they live until they are old enough to either move to a bigger city with bigger youth academy in the same country or even to another country to play (for example NHL)

it could only take Jokerit three years or so to get back to the TOP level in Finnish hockey.

sure, if they win all the lower leagues and get promoted every season. The second highest league is already so close to the Elite League that it’s not a walk in the park to win.

Also, few good players want to play in a team playing in the third highest league. Going from the best league in Europe to third highest in Finland is a pretty big step back. And after selling their souls to Russia, there aren’t many club loyal players in Jokerit who would stick around no matter what. Even the fanbase got divided to those who continued supporting them even in KHL and those who abandoned the team. Finland has such bad blood with Russia.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by SuperSoynic_Speed.