Sanni Vanhanen

Finnish ice hockey player

Ice hockey player
Sanni Vanhanen
Born (2005-07-01) 1 July 2005 (age 18)
Nokia, Finland
Height 168 cm (5 ft 6 in)
Weight 60 kg (132 lb; 9 st 6 lb)
Position Forward
Shoots Left
NSML team
Former teams		 HIFK Helsinki
Tappara Tampere U16
Ilves Tampere
National team  Finland
Playing career 2019–present

Sanni Vanhanen (born 1 July 2005) is a Finnish ice hockey player and member of the Finnish national ice hockey team, currently playing in the Naisten Liiga (NSML) with HIFK Naiset.[1] She was the youngest player to represent Finland in the 2021 IIHF Women's World Championship and was the youngest player to compete in the women's ice hockey tournament at the 2022 Winter Olympics.[2][3]

Playing career

Vanhanen began playing ice hockey with the youth department of HC Nokia in her hometown of Nokia, in the Pirkanmaa region of southwestern Finland. As HC Nokia did not have a girls' ice hockey section, she played with HC Nokia's top boys' teams for her age. In the 2017–18 season, her last with HC Nokia, she played with the club's boys' teams in the under-12 (U12; E1) AAA league and the U13 (D2) AA and U13 (D2) AAA leagues (see minor ice hockey).[4]

Vanhanen joined the youth department of Tappara hockey club in Tampere, a neighboring municipality some 15 km (9.3 mi) east of Nokia, ahead of the 2018–19 season.[5] Like HC Nokia, Tappara did not have a girls' ice hockey section, and in her first season with the club, she played in the boys' D1 (U14) AAA with Tappara Musta ('Tappara Black') and also appeared in a few matches as a substitute with Tappara's other D1 AAA team, Tappara Sininen ('Tappara Blue'). In the D1 AAA preliminary series (alkusarja), she ranked sixth of all Tappara Musta players for scoring, with 10 points in 16 games, and tied for third in team assists, with 7. Facing new and more challenging opponents in the regular season (jatkosarja), her scoring was limited to 2 goals and four assists for 6 points in 15 games.

During the 2021–22 season, she played in the U16 SM-sarja with the men's under-16 team of Tappara and on loan in the Naisten Liiga with the Tampereen Ilves Naiset.

International play

Vanhanen participated in the 2019 Women's U16 European Cup, winning silver with the Finnish team.[6] She joined the Finnish national under-18 team in the 2019–20 season, playing in nineteen international matches in addition to competing at the 2020 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship, where Finland finished fourth.[7]

Vanhanen's first invitation to a senior national team training camp was the roster selection camp for the World Championship in March 2021. National team head coach Pasi Mustonen described her as a player with "absolutely tremendous potential" and identified her adaptability as a key attribute that led to her selection.[8]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2017–18 HC Nokia Mustat D2 AA 6 7 12 19 0 – – – – –
2017–18 HC Nokia Oranssit D2 AAA 25 11 14 25 4 – – – – –
2018–19 Tappara Musta D1 AAA 31 5 11 16 4 – – – – –
2018–19 Tappara Sininen D1 AAA 4 0 0 0 0 – – – – –
2019–20 Tappara Musta D1 AAA 22 8 4 12 2 – – – – –
2019–20 Tappara Sininen D1 AAA 1 1 1 2 0 – – – – –
2020–21 Tappara Musta U15 AAA 15 3 6 9 0 – – – – –
2020–21 Tappara Sininen U15 AAA 1 0 1 1 0 – – – – –
2020–21 Ilves (L) NSML 2 2 2 4 0 7 1 1 2 0
2021–22 Tappara U15 Black U15 AAA 2 0 0 0 0 – – – – –
2021–22 Tappara U16 U16 SM-sarja 28 5 4 9 2 – – – – –
2021–22 Ilves (L) NSML 4 2 1 3 0 – – – – –
2022–23 HIFK NSML 22 18 22 40 4 9 12 8 20 0
Naisten Liiga totals 28 22 25 47 4 16 13 9 22 0

Sources: [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]

International

Year Team Event Result   GP G A Pts PIM
2020 Finland U18 4th 6 0 0 0 0
2021 Finland WC 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 4 0 1 1 0
2022 Finland OG 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 7 0 1 1 0
2022 Finland U18 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 5 3 3 6 2
2022 Finland WC 6th 7 0 1 1 6
2023 Finland U18 4th 6 3 2 5 2
2023 Finland WC 5th 7 0 6 6 0
Junior totals 17 6 5 11 4
Senior totals 25 0 9 9 6

Sources: [22][23]

Awards and honors

Award Year
Naisten Liiga
Aurora Borealis Cup Champion 2023
Playoff MVP 2023[24]
Noora Räty Award 2023[25]
International
World Championship Bronze Medal 2021
Olympic Bronze Medal 2022
EYOF Bronze Medal 2022
World U18 All-Star Team 2022[26]
World U18 Bronze Medal 2022[27]
World U18 Top-3 Player on Team 2022[28]
2023[29]

References

  1. ^ Moilanen, Mika (7 June 2022). "Superlupaus Sanni Vanhanen, 16, siirtyy HIFK:n riveihin: "Hyvät fiilikset tulla Stadiin"". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 11 June 2022.
  2. ^ Huttunen, Sasha (7 April 2021). "15-vuotias teinilupaus valittiin yllättäen Suomen MM-joukkueeseen: "Totesin, että huh huh" – myös pelaaja itse yllättyi". Iltalehti (in Finnish). Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  3. ^ "Beijing 2022 – Athletes: Sanni VANHANEN, Ice Hockey". Olympics.com. Archived from the original on 1 March 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  4. ^ Aalto, Markku. "Pelaajat: Sanni Vanhanen, 2017-2018". Leijonat.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  5. ^ Teiskonlahti, Kirsi (25 April 2021). "Naisleijonien Sanni Vanhanen, 15, on poikkeuksellinen kyky, joka muistuttaa päävalmentajasta Sebastian Ahoa – "Hänellä on hartioiden päällä tietokone"". Aamulehti (in Finnish). Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  6. ^ O'Brien, Derek (1 May 2019). "Russia wins Women's U16 European Cup". IIHF. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  7. ^ "IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women's World Championship – Player Statistics by Team: FIN - Finland". IIHF. 2 January 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  8. ^ Lund, Sakari (7 April 2021). "Naisleijonien päävalmentaja vaikuttui MM-joukkueen 15-vuotiaasta kuopuksesta jo toissa vuonna: "Sannilla on ihan järjettömän huikea potentiaali"". Yle Urheilu (in Finnish). Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  9. ^ "2017-2018 D2 AA alkusarja, lohko 10 – Pelaajatilastot, HC Nokia Mustat" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 10 December 2017. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  10. ^ "2017-2018 D2 AA jatkosarja, lohko 5 – Pelaajatilastot, HC Nokia Mustat" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 18 March 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  11. ^ "2017-2018 D2 AAA alkusarja, lohko 4 – Pelaajatilastot, HC Nokia Oranssit" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 10 December 2017. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  12. ^ "2017-2018 D2 AAA jatkosarja, lohko 3 – Pelaajatilastot, HC Nokia Oranssit" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 18 March 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  13. ^ "2018-2019 D1 AAA alkusarja, lohko 2 – Pelaajatilastot, Tappara Musta" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 9 December 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  14. ^ "2018-2019 D1 AAA alkusarja, lohko 2 – Pelaajatilastot, Tappara Sininen" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 9 December 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  15. ^ "2018-2019 D1 AAA jatkosarja, lohko 4 – Pelaajatilastot, Tappara Musta" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 24 March 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  16. ^ "2018-2019 D1 AAA jatkosarja, lohko 2 – Pelaajatilastot, Tappara Sininen" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 23 March 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  17. ^ "2019-2020 D1 AAA alkusarja, lohko 2 – Pelaajatilastot, Tappara Musta" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 8 December 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  18. ^ "2019-2020 D1 AAA jatkosarja, lohko 2 – Pelaajatilastot, Tappara Musta" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 8 March 2020. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  19. ^ "2019-2020 D1 AAA jatkosarja, lohko 2 – Pelaajatilastot, Tappara Sininen" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 8 March 2020. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  20. ^ "2020-2021 U15 AAA alkusarja, lohko 2 – Pelaajatilastot, Tappara Musta" (XLS). Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). 29 November 2020. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  21. ^ Aalto, Markku. "Pelaajat: Sanni Vanhanen > Valitse kausi: 2021-2022 > Pelaajatilastot: Sarjat". Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  22. ^ "2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women's World Championship – Player Statistics by Team: FIN - Finland". International Ice Hockey Federation. 15 January 2023. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  23. ^ "2023 IIHF Women's World Championship – Player Statistics by Team: FIN - Finland". International Ice Hockey Federation. 16 April 2023. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  24. ^ Löfman, Heikki (22 March 2023). "Mestaruuden ratkaissut Sanni Vanhanen jakaa kiitoksia ympärilleen: "Arjessa kehittyy todella hyvin"". Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). Retrieved 28 March 2023.
  25. ^ Mennander, Pasi (10 June 2023). "Naisten Liigan kauden 2022–23 palkitut pelaajat, valmentajat ja tuomarit". Finnish Ice Hockey Association (in Finnish). Retrieved 12 June 2023.
  26. ^ "2022 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women's World Championship – Media All Stars" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 13 June 2022. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  27. ^ "2022 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women's World Championship – Bronze Medal Game, Game 21" (PDF). International Ice Hockey Federation. 13 June 2022. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  28. ^ "2022 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women's World Championship – Best Players of Each Team Selected by Coaches". International Ice Hockey Federation. 12 June 2022. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  29. ^ "2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women's World Championship – Best Players of Each Team Selected by Coaches". International Ice Hockey Federation. 14 January 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2024.

External links

  • Biographical information and career statistics from Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com
  • Sanni Vanhanen at Olympedia Edit this at Wikidata