Story Summary
HIFK have completed the first additions to Tommi Miettinen’s coaching group, bringing Ville Viitaluoma up from the club’s under-20 side and retaining Jan Lundell in a dual role.
Miettinen was named HIFK head coach for the rest of the season after the club dismissed Olli Jokinen and his coaching staff. Viitaluoma will now join the senior team’s coaching set-up after leading HIFK’s under-20 team since the 2024-25 season, while Lundell will continue as both goaltending coach and team manager.
The renewed group is due to be behind the bench when HIFK visit Kiekko-Espoo on Friday.
Key Facts
- Tommi Miettinen will serve as HIFK head coach for the remainder of the season after Olli Jokinen and his coaching staff were dismissed.
- Ville Viitaluoma has moved from his role as HIFK under-20 head coach into the senior team’s coaching group.
- Viitaluoma has coached HIFK’s under-20 team since the 2024-25 season, and the side currently leads the U20 SM-sarja.
- Jan Lundell will continue as HIFK’s goaltending coach and team manager.
- Lundell has worked as HIFK’s Liiga goaltending coach from 2012 to 2025 and has held the club’s goaltending responsibility and senior-team manager role for the past two seasons.
- Before becoming a coach, Viitaluoma played 745 Liiga regular-season games and 83 play-off games, including time with HIFK.
- HIFK’s revised coaching group will make its bench debut in Friday’s away game against Kiekko-Espoo.
IHM Discussion
The appointments give Miettinen immediate continuity as he takes charge for the rest of the campaign. Lundell remains in the roles he has already held around HIFK’s goaltenders and senior squad operations, while Viitaluoma arrives from inside the organisation rather than from outside the club.
Viitaluoma’s promotion also links the senior side with an under-20 programme that has made a strong start and sits top of its league. His extensive Liiga playing record, which included a spell with HIFK, adds further familiarity with the domestic game and the club to a staff reshaped during the season.
Why It Matters
A mid-season coaching change can alter the daily working structure around a team as much as the person in the head-coach role. HIFK have chosen to supplement Miettinen with two figures already known within the organisation, retaining Lundell’s responsibilities and moving Viitaluoma directly from the under-20 programme.
The immediate test is practical rather than theoretical: the new group will be in place for an away fixture against Kiekko-Espoo on Friday.
Mini Q&A
Who has joined Tommi Miettinen’s HIFK coaching group?
Ville Viitaluoma has joined from HIFK’s under-20 team, while Jan Lundell continues as goaltending coach and team manager.
What is Ville Viitaluoma’s background at HIFK?
Viitaluoma has coached HIFK’s under-20 side since 2024-25 and also played for the club during a Liiga career that included 745 regular-season games and 83 play-off games.
What Comes Next
The next confirmed checkpoint is Friday’s away match against Kiekko-Espoo, when Miettinen, Viitaluoma and Lundell are scheduled to be behind the HIFK bench together.