Kari Eloranta

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FinlandFinland  Kari Eloranta Ice hockey player
Date of birth February 29, 1956
place of birth Lahti , Finland
Nickname Piri
size 188 cm
Weight 91 kg
position defender
Shot hand Left
Career stations
until 1978 Kiekko-Reipas
1978-1981 Leksands IF
1981-1982 Calgary Flames
1982 St. Louis Blues
1982-1985 Calgary Flames
1985-1987 HV 71 Jönköping
1987-1990 HC Lugano
1990-1991 Hockey Reipas
1991-1995 Rögle BK
1995-1997 Reipas / Pelicans Lahti

Kari Pekka "Piri" Eloranta (born February 29, 1956 in Lahti ) is a former Finnish ice hockey and soccer player and ice hockey coach who worked for the Calgary Flames and St. Louis Blues in the National from 1974 to 1997 Hockey League .

Career

Kari Eloranta began his career as a hockey player in his hometown with Kiekko-Reipas , for whose professional team he made his debut in the second-rate I divisioona in the 1975/76 season . During this season he also rose to the SM-liiga with his team . After two years in the top Finnish league, the defender played from 1978 to 1981 for Leksands IF in the Swedish Elitserien . On September 15, 1981, he signed a contract with the Calgary Flames as a free agent , for which he gave five templates in 19 games before he was given to the St. Louis Blues shortly before the end of the trade deadline . The Finn only played 17 games for the Missouri team before he was bought back by the Calgary Flames during the summer break. With the Canadians he had a regular place in three years.

In the summer of 1985 Eloranta returned to Europe, where he played for HV 71 Jönköping in the Elitserien for two years before he was under contract with HC Lugano in National League A from 1987 to 1990 . With the Swiss he won the national championship in 1988 and 1990 . For the 1990/91 season, the left shooter returned to his home club Hockey-Reipas in Finland. He spent the following season at Rögle BK in Division 1, the second Swedish division. With Rögle he immediately achieved promotion to the Elitserien. After a total of four years at Rögle BK, the former Olympian competed for the last time from 1995 to 1997 for Reipas, who had since been relegated to the second-class I divisioona . The jersey number 17 was banned by the Pelicans after his retirement and has not been awarded since then.

Following his playing career, Eloranta worked from 1996 to 2002 as head coach for his ex-club Pelicans Lahti, with whom he returned to the SM-liiga in the 1998/99 season. Afterwards he was responsible for the Rapperswil-Jona Lakers from the Swiss NLA for three years . After working for Ilves Tampere in his Finnish homeland in the 2005/06 season , he briefly returned to Rapperswil in Switzerland in 2007. In the relegation year of Mora IK from the Elitserien in 2008, the Finn was just as much responsible as afterwards in the season 2008/09 at HeKi Heinola in the Mestis . After an engagement in the 2010/11 season as head coach at EHC Lustenau in the Austrian National League, he returned to Finland and worked as a trainer for the Pelicans 2011–2013 and 2015–2016.

International

For Finland Eloranta took part in the Junior World Championships in 1975 and 1976 and the World Championships in 1979 , 1981 , 1986 and 1989 . He was also on the Finnish squad at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid , 1988 in Calgary and 1992 in Albertville .

Achievements and Awards

As a trainer

  • 1998 I divisioona coach of the year
  • 1999 Promotion to the SM-liiga with Pelicans Lahti
  • 1999 I divisioona coach of the year

NHL statistics

Seasons Games Gates Assists Points Penalty minutes
Regular season 5 267 13 103 116 155
Playoffs 4th 26th 1 7th 8th 19th

Soccer

With Lahden Kuusysi , Eloranta won the Finnish football championship in 1982 and 1986.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Eloranta, Kari
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Eloranta, Kari Pekka; Piri (nickname)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Finnish ice hockey player and coach
DATE OF BIRTH February 29, 1956
PLACE OF BIRTH Lahti , Finland