A well-rounded, technically sound team that seems to always be strong in international competitions. The team is expected to play a smart, defensive game and will rely on standouts like Teemu Selanne and Sami Kapanen to produce most of their offence. Most of the Finnish players have extensive international hockey experience, and this will be to their advantage when playing the North American teams.
| NO. |
PLAYER |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Birth
Date |
Team |
| 4 |
Kimmo Timonen |
D |
5'10 |
196 |
3/18/75 |
Nashville (NHL) |
| 5 |
Sami Salo |
D |
6'3 |
215 |
9/2/74 |
Ottawa (NHL) |
| 6 |
Ossi Vaananen |
D |
6'4 |
205 |
8/18/80 |
Phoenix (NHL) |
| 7 |
Aki-Petteri Berg |
D |
6'3 |
215 |
7/28/77 |
Toronto (NHL) |
| 8 |
Teemu Selanne |
RW |
6'0 |
201 |
7/3/70 |
San Jose (NHL) |
| 10 |
Ville Nieminen |
LW |
6'0 |
200 |
4/6/77 |
Colorado (NHL) |
| 12 |
Olli Jokinen |
C |
6'3 |
208 |
12/5/78 |
Florida (NHL) |
| 14 |
Raimo Helminen |
C |
6'0 |
185 |
3/11/64 |
Ilves Tampere |
| 16 |
Niklas
Hagman |
LW |
6'0 |
190 |
12/5/79 |
Florida
(NHL) |
| 17 |
Tomi Kallio |
LW |
6'0 |
190 |
1/27/77 |
Atlanta (NHL) |
| 21 |
Jyrki Lumme |
D |
6'1 |
209 |
7/16/66 |
Toronto
(NHL) |
| 22 |
Mikko Eloranta |
LW |
6'0 |
190 |
8/24/72 |
Boston (NHL) |
| 24 |
Sami Kapanen |
LW |
5'10 |
180 |
6/14/73 |
Carolina (NHL) |
| 26 |
Jere Lehtinen |
LW |
6'0 |
200 |
6/24/73 |
Dallas (NHL) |
| 27 |
Teppo Numminen |
D |
6'2 |
199 |
7/3/68 |
Phoenix (NHL) |
| 30 |
Pasi Nurminen |
G |
5'10 |
189 |
12/17/75 |
Chicago (AHL) |
| 31 |
Jussi Markkanen |
G |
5'11 |
183 |
5/8/75 |
Edmonton (NHL) |
| 35 |
Jani Hurme |
G |
6'0 |
187 |
1/7/75 |
Ottawa (NHL) |
| 36 |
Juha Yl�nen |
C |
6'1 |
189 |
2/13/72 |
Tampa Bay (NHL) |
| 37 |
Jarkko Ruutu |
LW |
6'2 |
194 |
8/23/75 |
Vancouver (NHL) |
| 41 |
Antti Aalto |
C |
6'2 |
210 |
3/4/75 |
Jokerit (Finland) |
| 42 |
Juha Lind |
LW |
5'11 |
180 |
1/2/74 |
Sodertalje SK |
| 44 |
Janne Niinimaa |
D |
6'1 |
220 |
5/22/75 |
Edmonton (NHL) |
Weaknesses
Finland won't dominate any one aspect of the game. Their forwards & defence are only average compared to other teams, and their goaltending may be the weakest of the 'Big 6' teams. Jani Hurme is expected to start in goal, and he'll need to be exceptionally strong to compete against the likes of Hasek and Khabibulin.
History
The Fins are coming off consecutive bronze medals in Nagano and Lillehammer � however, they've never won Olympic gold.
Flames Players/Prospects
None. Jukka Hentunen and Toni Lydman were not offered spots on the team.
Keys to Victory
Finland will need a solid two-way effort from everyone on the team if they hope to repeat as medallists in Salt Lake City. Since they don't have the type of players that can individually make a big difference, they'll need to rely on teamwork and offensive production from all of their lines. Jani Hurme will also need to prove that he can play with the big boys and win key games if Finland hopes to pull off an upset in the medal round.
Team Finland
