Story Summary
The Innsbrucker Haie have handed interim responsibility for their senior team to Ville Kolppanen and Daniel Mitterdorfer after Ryan Kinasewich and Florian Pedevilla were relieved of their previous duties. The club have turned to two internal figures while pursuing a long-term solution for the coaching position.
Kolppanen, 34, has been part of Innsbruck’s coaching staff since October 2024 and currently serves as head coach of the club’s under-20 side as well as its goaltending coach. Mitterdorfer, 37, moves across from his Business & Development Manager role, bringing a playing background that includes more than 400 appearances in Austria’s top division, over 60 international matches for Austria and three Austrian championship titles.
Key Facts
- Ville Kolppanen and Daniel Mitterdorfer have taken interim sporting responsibility for Innsbruck’s senior team.
- Ryan Kinasewich and Florian Pedevilla were relieved of their previous duties by Innsbruck.
- Kolppanen has been with the club’s coaching staff since October 2024 and is the current under-20 head coach and goaltending coach.
- Mitterdorfer had been working as Innsbruck’s Business & Development Manager before joining the interim coaching arrangement.
- Mitterdorfer is a former defenceman who played more than 400 games in Austria’s top division and made more than 60 international appearances for Austria.
- Innsbruck general manager Günther Hanschitz said the club are also working on a long-term coaching solution.
IHM Discussion
This is an internal response at a moment of change for Innsbruck. Kolppanen arrives with direct coaching experience inside the organisation, while Mitterdorfer knows the club from several perspectives: as an HCI youth product, a former Austrian international and a member of its current business and development staff.
Kolppanen said he was grateful for the opportunity but acknowledged the scale of the work ahead. Mitterdorfer said he wanted to help the team return to winning ways and expressed confidence in the squad’s quality and character. Hanschitz’s explanation centred on their familiarity with both the players and the club’s structures, rather than presenting the interim pairing as a finished long-term appointment.
Why It Matters
The Haie have chosen continuity of knowledge while the search for a permanent coaching solution continues. Kolppanen already works with players in the club environment, and Mitterdorfer brings extensive experience of Austrian hockey as a former player.
That gives Innsbruck two interim leaders who do not need to be introduced to the organisation. Their immediate task is to support the senior squad through a difficult phase, while the club separately decides who will hold the coaching role in the longer term.
Mini Q&A
Who is taking interim charge of Innsbruck?
Ville Kolppanen and Daniel Mitterdorfer have been given interim sporting responsibility for Innsbruck’s senior team.
What are Kolppanen and Mitterdorfer’s backgrounds at Innsbruck?
Kolppanen has been on the coaching staff since October 2024, while Mitterdorfer was the club’s Business & Development Manager and previously came through HCI’s youth system as a player.
Coach Mark Comment
Daniel Mitterdorfer’s route into this assignment is unusual: he moves from a Business & Development Manager role to sharing responsibility for the senior side. Yet he also brings more than 400 top-flight Austrian games and over 60 international appearances, so the playing background is substantial.
Alongside Kolppanen’s existing coaching work, that creates an interim partnership built from two different kinds of familiarity with Innsbruck. The club have deliberately looked inward while they take time over the permanent decision.
What Comes Next
Innsbruck will continue working on a long-term solution for the coaching position while Kolppanen and Mitterdorfer lead the senior team on an interim basis.
IHM Final View
Innsbruck have acted quickly by entrusting the senior side to Kolppanen and Mitterdorfer. The arrangement gives the club familiar hands for the immediate period, but the permanent coaching search remains the next significant decision.