Hannu Virta

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FinlandFinland  Hannu Virta Ice hockey player
Date of birth March 22, 1963
place of birth Turku , Finland
size 181 cm
Weight 92 kg
position defender
Shot hand Left
Draft
NHL Entry Draft 1981 , 2nd round, 38th position
Buffalo Sabers
Career stations
until 1981 TPS Turku
1981-1986 Buffalo Sabers
1986-1994 TPS Turku
1994-1996 Grasshopper Club Zurich
1996-1997 TPS Turku
1997-1998 ZSC Lions
FinlandFinland  Hannu Virta
Coaching stations
1998-2003 TPS Turku (Ass.)
2003-2005 Espoo Blues
2005-2007 TPS Turku (Ass.)
2007-2009 TPS Turku
2009 HC Lugano
2009-2017 Jokerite (Ass.)
2017-2018 Salawat Julajew Ufa (Ass.)

Hannu Markus Virta (born March 22, 1963 in Turku ) is a former Finnish ice hockey player and coach who played for the Buffalo Sabers in the National Hockey League and TPS Turku in the SM-liiga during his active time from 1980 to 1998 Has. Most recently he was assistant coach at Salawat Yulayev Ufa in the Continental Hockey League .

Career

Hannu Virta began his career as a hockey player in 1980 in his hometown with TPS Turku , for which he had already played in his youth. In his rookie year , the defender scored 17 points, including five goals, in 36 games in the 1981/82 season, and was runner-up with Turku. For his achievements he received the award as the best new professional in the SM-liiga . He had previously been selected in the NHL Entry Draft in 1981 in the second round as a total of 38th player by the Buffalo Sabers , who ordered him to North America during the current season, where he played three regular season games and four playoff games for the Sabers was active in the National Hockey League . The Finn played regularly in Buffalo for the next four years before returning to Turku in 1986.

With TPS he became Finnish champion in four of the following eight years - 1989, 1990, 1991 and 1993 - . In addition, he and his team reached second place in the European Cup in 1990 , which he won three years later with TPS in the final against Russian representatives HK Dynamo Moscow . During his first station in other European countries, Virta was under contract with the GCK Lions in the Swiss National League B from 1994 to 1996 , before playing again for Turku in the 1996/97 season, with whom he became runner-up. After only one year Virta moved again to Switzerland, where he ended his active career in 1998 with the ZSC Lions from the National League A.

As a trainer

Following his playing career, Virta took over as head coach for the Espoo Blues in the 2003/04 season . He also worked as an assistant coach for the Finnish national ice hockey team for five years . In the 2007/08 season he was behind the gang as a coach at his ex-club TPS Turku. He then received on January 12, 2009 a contract as head coach at HC Lugano in the Swiss National League A, in which he was also active as a player.

Between 2009 and 2017 Virta was an assistant trainer at Jokerit , then one year in the same position at Salawat Julajew Ufa .

International

For Finland Virta took part in the U20 World Junior Championships in 1982 , as well as the A-World Championships in 1987 , 1989 , 1991 , 1994 , 1995 , 1996 and 1997 . He also played for Finland at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey and the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer .

Achievements and Awards

  • 1990 Best defender in the SM-liiga
  • 1991 Finnish champion with TPS Turku
  • 1991 Best defender in the SM-liiga
  • 1991 Lynces Academici Defenceman Award
  • 1991 Best plus / minus statistics in the SM-liiga playoffs
  • 1993 Finnish champion with TPS Turku
  • 1993 European Cup win with TPS Turku
  • 1997 Finnish runner-up with TPS Turku
  • 1997 European Hockey League win with TPS Turku

International

NHL statistics

Seasons Games Gates Assists Points Penalty minutes
Regular season 5 245 25th 101 126 66
Playoffs 3 17th 1 3 4th 6th

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ nzz.ch, Lugano hires Hannu Virta as a coach

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Virta, Hannu
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Virta, Hannu Markus
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Finnish ice hockey player and coach
DATE OF BIRTH March 22, 1963
PLACE OF BIRTH Turku , Finland