Ice hockey | The Jokers and Kiekko-Espoo save the traditional club from misery – this is how it happens

Ice hockey Mestis team Joensuu Kiekko-Pojat has been in trouble all season.

The game in the rink is going well and the team is currently seventh in the league. However, home plate has been in the wrong place all season.

Due to the renovation of its home hall completed in 1982, JoKP has played its home matches in Outokumpu, about 40 kilometers from the center of Joensuu.

Even the move to the 700-seat Outokumpu hall was a hard blow to the team's finances, but what made the situation catastrophic was that the number of spectators actually collapsed.

Last season, JoKP's audience average was 1,200 and Mesti's second largest. This season, the people of Joensuu are the series jumbo with 320 viewers.

The total number of 4,809 of the fifteen home matches played so far is the same as the capacity of the Joensuu hall. The limit of 500 viewers has been exceeded only once.

“The change has been radical. However, we are one of the big clubs in Mestis, if you can talk about big clubs in Mestis at all. The audience has always been about a thousand, and last spring even 2,500”, manager of JoKP Jaakko Lipponen tells.

Lipponen did not expect that Outokumpu's hall would be full from match to match. The low number of viewers was still surprising.

“I didn't expect that there would always be even 500 spectators, but it surprised me that the matches have mainly had 200-250 spectators. I understand last week's 148 viewers when it was over 30 degrees below zero.”

At least the five-euro tickets have not made the people of Joensuu drive half an hour to the Mestis match.

“They are second and third division audience figures, and our economy cannot sustain it if we want to play at this level,” he says.

Last season JoKP made a loss of 200,000 euros, and this season the income will collapse. Therefore, Lipponen and JoKP made drastic adjustments for the 2023–24 season. The player budget was halved and is now Mesti's smallest, 70,000 euros.

“Playing in Evacko has also become an additional expense, when you have to go to home games by bus and you have to organize meals for the team. Tens of tons quickly become a sight to behold.”

“Surgeries have been performed on everything possible,” says Lipponen.

He himself has even compensated the bus company that transported spectators to Outokumpu for the empty seats.

Season however, salvation is around the corner.

On Saturday, JoKP will play its first home game of the season against Mesti's crowd magnet Jokeri at Bolt Stadion, which is mainly known as the home arena of the Superpesis team Joensuun Maila next door to the ice rink.

And the frost has helped too. Now, solid natural ice has been frozen in place of JoMa's feed plate, on which Jokerit and JoKP will play for series points on Saturday night – in front of more than 3,500 spectators.

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We have eight boxes at Bolt Stadium, which were sold out for both outdoor games in an hour.

The following week, JoKP will face Kiekko-Espo on the same rink, which is second in the series after the Jokers in audience numbers.

In addition, manager Lipponen has already agreed to move the Jokers' visit to Joensuu in February to Savonlinna, where a bigger hall and local puck fans looking forward to Mestis games offer an opportunity to improve the economy.

“Economically, all three games have a big impact on the club's future. The first outdoor game is practically sold out, because seats have not been available for a long time and more than a thousand tickets have been sold for the Espoo match as well. I believe that many will still wait and make their purchase decision after the first game,” states Lipponen.

“I expect at least a couple of thousand spectators to Savonlinna and I know that, for example, from Kitee, where the Jokerit drug was once born Tomek Valtonen along, there are groups coming.”

So, according to Lipponen's conservative estimates, JoKP gathers the same number of spectators for two outdoor matches and Savonlinna's Jokeri match as for its 21 other home matches in total.

“Plus other ancillary sales. We have eight boxes at Bolt Stadium, which were sold out for both outdoor matches in an hour.”

Jokerit is the superior audience locomotive of hockey Mestis. Picture: Kari chubby

To Joensuu hundreds of Jokeri fans also arrive. Lipponen praises the Jokeri and Kiekko-Espoo for the positive attitude of playing the series matches outdoors.

“Both clubs were immediately involved, of course this is also an experience for their players and fans.”

In addition, the management team of at least a couple of SM league clubs will be there to watch the event.

“It feels good that they also come to see what Joensuu's evacuation club organizes. Maybe we can offer them a model.”

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“Joker matches save our season, I dare say that.”

Bolt Stadion is ready. The trough is upright and the ice is shiny. During the rest of the week, show lights will be brought in and manager Lipponen will brush the stand clean of snow with the fans and a couple of partners.

“If it's very cold, we take additional breaks and take other warming measures. There is no freezing point, says Lipponen, who has already organized three previous outdoor games in Joensuu for the Suomi series team.

“For me, this has been a dream for many years. It's been close a couple of times, but Korona ruined it.”

JoKP has experienced numerous setbacks in recent years.

“Corona, the ice rink fire, and now the renovation. Sometimes it's frustrating when we don't get to do our jobs to the fullest, but a brighter time is coming.”

“Joker matches save our season, I dare say that.”

Plekes were installed in the rink built at the Joensuu baseball stadium at the beginning of the week. Picture: Matti Vassinen