# 2020–21 Naisten Liiga season

The 2020–21 Naisten Liiga season was the thirty-eighth season of the Naisten Liiga, Finland's elite women's ice hockey league, since the league's creation in 1982. The season began, as scheduled, on 5 September 2020, making the Naisten Liiga the first women's national ice hockey league in Europe and, quite likely, in the world to return to play for the 2020–21 season.

## League business
### Number of teams

When the 2019–20 Naisten Liiga season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the league qualification series (Finnish: karsintasarja) had not been completed. At the time of cancellation, Lukko Naiset had amassed an unreachable points advantage and secured their place in the Naisten Liiga and APV Naiset had been mathematically relegated to the Naisten Mestis but it was still possible for either RoKi Naiset or TPS Naiset to qualify. Recognizing that it would be unfair to relegate either RoKi or TPS, the Finnish Ice Hockey Association announced that both teams would participate in the 2020–21 Naisten Liiga season, increasing the number of teams in the preliminary round from ten to eleven.

### League placement rankings

In an effort to account for expected cancellations of some matches due to COVID-19 safety protocols, the Finnish Ice Hockey Association announced league rankings would be determined by the average points per game of each team rather than the absolute point total traditionally used. For example, a team with two wins in two games played (6 points total, average 3.0) ranks higher in the league table than a team with four wins, one overtime loss, and one regulation loss (13 points total, average 2.17).

### Coaching changes

| Team | 2019–20 | 2020–21 | Details |
| Off–season ||||
| HPK Kiekkonaiset | Katja Pasanen | Mari Saarinen | Pasanen was fired by GM Jorma Hassinen after HPK lost in the 2019–20 Naisten Liiga quarterfinals, despite having what Hassinen believed to be the fourth-best roster in team history. Saarinen was promoted from assistant coach to head coach shortly thereafter. Saarinen retired from playing in 2012 and previously served as head coach of Ilves Naiset during the 2016–17 and 2017–18 seasons. |
| Tampereen Ilves Naiset | Ville Tolvanen | Linda Välimäki Leppänen | In February 2020, Ilves announced Välimäki Leppänen had signed as head coach of Ilves Naiset for the 2020–21 season. Välimäki Leppänen retired from playing in 2019 and served as director of Ilves' girls' hockey department for several years prior to her appointment as head coach of the women's team. |
| Mid-season ||||
| Lukko Naiset | Marko Toivonen | Sami Piilikangas | Toivonen resigned in late November and assistant coach Piilikangas assumed head coaching duties on 24 November. |
| Vaasan Sport Naiset | Marko Haapala | Susanne Uppgård | Health issues prompted Haapala to step away from his role as head coach and assistant coach Uppgård took his place on 1 December 2020. |
| TPS Naiset | Matti Tähkäpää | Kai Ortio | Tähkäpää was relieved and replaced by assistant coach Kai Ortio on 11 February 2021. At the time of the coaching change, TPS had five remaining games in the regular season and were guaranteed a playoff berth. Ortio previously served as head coach to men's junior teams of TUTO Hockey in the U18 Mestis and U20 Mestis. |

## Teams

| Team | Location | Home venue | Head coach | Captain |
| Stadin Gimmat or HIFK Naiset | Helsinki | Helsingin jäähalli | Saara Niemi | Karoliina Rantamäki |
| HPK Kiekkonaiset | Hämeenlinna | Metritriski Areena | Mari Saarinen | Riikka Noronen |
| Ilves Naiset | Tampere | Tesoman jäähalli | Linda Leppänen | Anna Kilponen |
| KalPa Naiset | Kuopio | Olvi Areena | Marjo Voutilainen | Emma Ritari |
| Kiekko-Espoo Naiset | Espoo | Tapiolan harjoitussareena | Sami Haapanen | Annina Rajahuhta |
| Kärpät Naiset | Oulu | Oulun Energia Areena | Janne Salmela | Suvi Käyhkö |
| Lukko Naiset | Rauma | Kivikylän Areena | Sami Piilikangas | Maija Koski |
| RoKi Naiset | Rovaniemi | Lappi Areena | Tuomas Liitola | Jenna Pirttijärvi |
| Sport Naiset | Vaasa | Vaasan Sähkö Arena | Susanne Uppgård | Pauliina Suoniemi |
| Team Kuortane | Kuortane | Kuortaneen jäähalli | Mira Kuisma | Anna-Lotta Räsänen |
| TPS Naiset | Turku | Marli Areena | Kai Ortio | Elina Heikkinen |
| Team promoted from the Naisten Mestis to the lower division |||||
| JYP Naiset | Jyväskylä | Jyväskylän harjoitusjäähall | Joni Aho | Zaida Holmström |

## Preliminary series

The addition of another team necessitated slight modification of the season format introduced for the 2019–20 season. With eleven participating teams, the twenty-game preliminary series (Finnish: alkusarja) was played strictly as a double round-robin without the addition of the two extra Opening Weekend Tournament games typically needed. The preliminaries were scheduled to be played during 5 September to 13 December 2020.
The season began as scheduled on 5 September 2020, making the Naisten Liiga the first women's national ice hockey league in Europe – and, quite possibly, in the world – to return to play for the 2020–21 season. The first game of the season saw Ilves Tampere beat TPS Turku 4–3 in overtime at Tesoman jäähalli.
On 1 December 2020, an emergency meeting of the Finnish Ice Hockey Association was held in response to a significant rise in cases and hospitalizations related to the COVID-19 pandemic in Finland during the preceding weeks. It was ultimately determined that all leagues under the Association's administration would suspend play from 2 to 31 December 2020, including the Naisten Liiga. The Naisten Liiga was expected to begin the regular season and lower division series in January, as outlined in the original season schedule, though the Finnish Ice Hockey Association expressed a desire to stage the games postponed during the period of suspended activity when play resumed.
Later in December, it was decided that Naisten Liiga teams would not attempt to play the games missed during the pause and would instead proceed directly to the regular season. With this determination, 29 November 2020 retroactively became the last day of the preliminary series, as it was the last day in which Naisten Liiga games were contested before the suspension.

### Standings

Kiekko-Espoo and KalPa, the two teams from the cancelled 2020 Aurora Borealis Cup final, continued to dominate the league in the preliminaries, ranking first and second at the conclusion of the series. Less expected were the third and fourth ranked teams, HIFK and TPS, which had both played in the lower division during the previous season and TPS had very nearly been eliminated in the 2020 qualifiers. Both teams were bolstered in the 2020–21 season by an influx of international talent.
Kiekko-Espoo were the regular season champions for the third consecutive season.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Placement |
| 1 | Kiekko-Espoo | 18 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 88 | 24 | +64 | 45 | Regular season |
| 2 | KalPa | 18 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 94 | 34 | +60 | 44 | Regular season |
| 3 | HIFK | 19 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 77 | 42 | +35 | 41 | Regular season |
| 4 | TPS | 18 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 75 | 55 | +20 | 34 | Regular season |
| 5 | Ilves | 19 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 60 | 42 | +18 | 34 | Regular season |
| 6 | HPK | 19 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 62 | 48 | +14 | 34 | Regular season |
| 7 | Team Kuortane | 17 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 50 | 52 | −2 | 22 | Lower division |
| 8 | Kärpät | 19 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 65 | 56 | +9 | 23 | Lower division |
| 9 | RoKi | 19 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 34 | 82 | −48 | 20 | Lower division |
| 10 | Lukko | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 26 | 108 | −82 | 3 | Lower division |
| 11 | Sport | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 16 | 104 | −88 | 0 | Lower division |
Official ranking
| Pos | Team | PpG |
| 1 | K-Espoo | 2.50 |
| 2 | KalPa | 2.44 |
| 3 | HIFK | 2.16 |
| 4 | TPS | 1.89 |
| 5 | Ilves | 1.79 |
| 6 | HPK | 1.79 |
| Pos | Team | PpG |
| 7 | Kuortane | 1.29 |
| 8 | Kärpät | 1.21 |
| 9 | RoKi | 1.05 |
| 10 | Lukko | 0.18 |
| 11 | Sport | 0.00 |

### Statistics

Scoring leaders
The following players led the league in points at the conclusion of the preliminaries on 29 November 2020.
| | Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1 | Elisa Holopainen | KalPa | 18 | 32 | 22 | 54 | 4 |
| 2 | Estelle Duvin | TPS | 18 | 18 | 22 | 40 | 51 |
| 3 | Emmanuelle Passard | HIFK | 19 | 15 | 20 | 35 | 4 |
| 4 | Matilda Nilsson | KalPa | 15 | 11 | 20 | 31 | 6 |
| 5 | Nelli Laitinen | K-Espoo | 16 | 11 | 19 | 30 | 10 |
| 6 | Jenna Suokko | Ilves | 19 | 17 | 11 | 28 | 20 |
| 7 | Riikka Noronen | HPK | 19 | 9 | 18 | 27 | 6 |
| 8 | Maija Otamo | TPS | 17 | 15 | 11 | 26 | 6 |
| 9 | Clara Rozier | HIFK | 19 | 10 | 15 | 25 | 22 |
| 10 | Annina Rajahuhta | K-Espoo | 17 | 12 | 12 | 24 | 16 |
| 11 | Michaela Pejzlová | HIFK | 14 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 0 |
Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders lead the league in save percentage at the conclusion of the preliminaries on 29 November 2020, while starting at least one third of matches.
| | Player | Team | GP | TOI | W | L | SA | GA | SO | SV% | GA60 |
| 1 | Minja Drufva | K-Espoo | 6 | 317:15 | 4 | 2 | 108 | 5 | 3 | .956 | 0.95 |
| 2 | Anni Keisala | Ilves | 14 | 849:58 | 8 | 4 | 450 | 27 | 2 | .943 | 1.91 |
| 3 | Tiina Ranne | KalPa | 9 | 543:33 | 7 | 1 | 226 | 16 | 2 | .934 | 1.77 |
| 4 | Salla Sivula | HPK | 8 | 480:59 | 5 | 3 | 245 | 18 | 0 | .932 | 2.25 |
| 5 | Aino Laitinen | Kuortane | 10 | 568:11 | 5 | 4 | 368 | 29 | 1 | .927 | 3.06 |
| 6 | Susanna Airaksinen | KalPa | 7 | 420:00 | 5 | 2 | 172 | 14 | 2 | .925 | 2.00 |
| 7 | Emilia Kyrkkö | Kuortane | 8 | 450:49 | 2 | 6 | 271 | 23 | 1 | .922 | 3.06 |
| 8 | Olivia Last | RoKi | 8 | 408:24 | 4 | 4 | 253 | 22 | 0 | .920 | 3.23 |
| 9 | Iina Kuusela | HIFK | 10 | 608:46 | 7 | 3 | 302 | 27 | 1 | .918 | 2.66 |
| 10 | Johanna Oksman | Kärpät | 12 | 721:12 | 4 | 8 | 355 | 32 | 1 | .917 | 2.66 |
| 10 | Meeri Räisänen | HPK | 8 | 484:45 | 3 | 4 | 244 | 22 | 0 | .917 | 2.72 |

## Regular season

The ten-game Naisten Liiga regular season, also called the upper division series (Finnish: ylempi jatkosarja), is played by the six top-ranked teams from the preliminary series.
Following the December stoppage, play resumed on 8 January 2021. The decision was made to begin the regular season (upper and lower divisional series) rather than attempt to makeup the games missed during the pause, resulting in teams with seventeen to nineteen games played at the conclusion of the preliminaries. As the league had already adopted the use of points per game for league rankings, the impact of dropping the missed games on the remainder of the season was negligible.

### Standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Postseason placement |
| 1 | Kiekko-Espoo | 27 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 124 | 46 | +78 | 65 | Playoff quarterfinals |
| 2 | KalPa | 25 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 121 | 51 | +70 | 56 | Playoff quarterfinals |
| 3 | HIFK | 27 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 104 | 59 | +45 | 57 | Playoff quarterfinals |
| 4 | Ilves | 28 | 12 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 83 | 66 | +17 | 47 | Playoff quarterfinals |
| 5 | HPK | 29 | 13 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 85 | 78 | +7 | 46 | Playoff quarterfinals |
| 6 | TPS | 27 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 91 | 97 | −6 | 39 | Playoff quarterfinals |
Official ranking
| Pos | Team | PpG |
| 1 | K-Espoo | 2.41 |
| 2 | KalPa | 2.24 |
| 3 | HIFK | 2.11 |
| 4 | Ilves | 1.68 |
| 5 | HPK | 1.59 |
| 6 | TPS | 1.44 |

### Statistics

Scoring leaders
The following players led the league in points at the conclusion of the regular season on 28 February 2021.
| | Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1 | Michaela Pejzlová | HIFK | 8 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 0 |
| 2 | Johanna Juutilainen | KalPa | 7 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 0 |
| 3 | Matilda Nilsson | KalPa | 7 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 4 |
| 4 | Emilia Vesa | K-Espoo | 8 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 2 |
| 5 | Karoliina Rantamäki | HIFK | 8 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 0 |
| 6 | Elisa Holopainen | KalPa | 7 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 6 |
| 7 | Emilia Varpula | Ilves | 9 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 0 |
| 8 | Jenna Suokko | Ilves | 9 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 8 |
| 9 | Kiti Seikkula | HPK | 7 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 2 |
| 10 | Helen Puputti | Ilves | 9 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 8 |
| 11 | Tinja-Mariia Haukijärvi | K-Espoo | 9 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 2 |
Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders lead the league in save percentage at the conclusion of the regular season on 27 February 2021, while starting at least one third of matches.
| | Player | Team | GP | TOI | W | L | SA | GA | SO | SV% | GA60 |
| 1 | Tiina Ranne | KalPa | 5 | 296:40 | 3 | 2 | 156 | 10 | 1 | .940 | 2.02 |
| 2 | Anni Keisala | Ilves | 8 | 485:54 | 3 | 3 | 293 | 19 | 0 | .939 | 2.35 |
| 3 | Meeri Räisänen | HPK | 5 | 304:20 | 1 | 3 | 218 | 16 | 0 | .932 | 3.15 |
| 4 | Iina Kuusela | HIFK | 5 | 298:34 | 3 | 2 | 133 | 10 | 1 | .930 | 2.01 |
| 5 | Salla Sivula | HPK | 5 | 304:12 | 2 | 2 | 168 | 13 | 0 | .928 | 2.56 |
| 6 | Isabella Laiho | TPS | 6 | 337:01 | 0 | 3 | 190 | 19 | 0 | .909 | 3.38 |
| 7 | Tiia Pajarinen | K-Espoo | 8 | 440:30 | 5 | 1 | 151 | 16 | 1 | .904 | 2.18 |
| 8 | Neea Pohjamo | TPS | 5 | 205:30 | 1 | 4 | 104 | 23 | 0 | .819 | 6.72 |

## Lower division series

The lower division series (Finnish: Alempi jatkosarja) was modified to be played by the five lowest-ranked teams from the preliminary series, rather than the standard four, and the top team from the cross-qualifiers (Finnish: Ristiinkarsinta) of the Naisten Mestis, rather than the top-two from the cross-qualifiers, to account for the additional Naisten Liiga team. The series was originally scheduled to be played during 16 January to 21 February 2021 but was ultimately played during 9 January to 28 February 2021.

### Standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Postseason placement |
| 1 | Kärpät | 10 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 47 | 12 | +35 | 24 | Playoff quarterfinals |
| 2 | Team Kuortane | 10 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 33 | 17 | +16 | 23 | Playoff quarterfinals |
| 3 | RoKi | 10 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 31 | 21 | +10 | 22 | Qualifiers |
| 4 | Lukko | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 21 | 37 | −16 | 9 | Qualifiers |
| 5 | Sport | 10 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 28 | 44 | −16 | 8 | Qualifiers |
| 6 | JYP | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 23 | 52 | −29 | 4 | Qualifiers |
Official ranking
| Pos | Team | PpG |
| 1 | Kärpät | 2.40 |
| 2 | Kuortane | 2.30 |
| 3 | RoKi | 2.20 |
| 4 | Lukko | 0.90 |
| 5 | Sport | 0.80 |
| 6 | JYP | 0.40 |

### Statistics

Scoring leaders
The following players led the lower division in points at the conclusion of the series on 28 February 2021.
| | Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1 | Jenna Kaila | Kuortane | 10 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 2 |
| 2 | Susanna Viitala | Sport | 10 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 2 |
| 3 | Sofianna Sundelin | Kuortane | 10 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 4 |
| 4 | Tilli Keränen | Kärpät | 7 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 0 |
| 5 | Jenna Pirttijärvi | RoKi | 10 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 2 |
| 6 | Kiira Yrjänen | Kuortane | 9 | 9 | 3 | 12 | 14 |
| 7 | Suvi Käyhkö | Kärpät | 10 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 0 |
| 8 | Anna-Kaisa Antti-Roiko | Kärpät | 9 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 8 |
| 9 | Paulina Suoniemi | Sport | 10 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 4 |
| 10 | Jonna Yli-Mäenpää | Kärpät | 10 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 4 |
| 11 | Maija Koski | Lukko | 10 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 0 |
Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders lead the lower division in save percentage at the conclusion of the series on 28 February 2021, while starting at least one third of matches.
| | Player | Team | GP | TOI | W | L | SA | GA | SO | SV% | GA60 |
| 1 | Johanna Oksman | Kärpät | 6 | 357:22 | 5 | 1 | 132 | 5 | 3 | .964 | 0.84 |
| 2 | Emilia Kyrkkö | Kuortane | 5 | 298:33 | 3 | 1 | 151 | 8 | 0 | .950 | 1.61 |
| 3 | Aino Laitinen | Kuortane | 4 | 237:05 | 3 | 1 | 94 | 6 | 1 | .940 | 1.52 |
| 4 | Janita Haapasaari | RoKi | 9 | 527:10 | 6 | 3 | 248 | 18 | 1 | .932 | 2.05 |
| 5 | Kati Asikainen | Kärpät | 4 | 239:22 | 3 | 1 | 71 | 7 | 1 | .910 | 1.75 |
| 6 | Johanna Niemi | Lukko | 7 | 378:10 | 2 | 5 | 203 | 22 | 0 | .902 | 3.49 |
| 7 | Katrina Saarenmaa | Lukko | 4 | 220:00 | 1 | 2 | 127 | 14 | 0 | .901 | 3.82 |
| 8 | Juuli Kivimäki | JYP | 6 | 320:33 | 1 | 5 | 211 | 25 | 0 | .894 | 4.68 |
| 9 | Noora Tonteri | JYP | 4 | 236:09 | 0 | 4 | 160 | 21 | 0 | .884 | 5.34 |
| 10 | Melisa Mörönen | Sport | 9 | 536:16 | 3 | 6 | 269 | 39 | 1 | .873 | 4.36 |

## Playoffs

International travel restrictions and quarantine protocols due to the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated extended travel schedules for national teams competing in the 2021 IIHF Women's World Championship, originally scheduled to begin on 4 April 2021, and the Naisten Liiga playoff structure was modified to conclude a week earlier than expected to accommodate a training camp within the quarantine period for the Finnish national team. On 27 February, it was announced that, in order to name the Finnish Champion by 27 March at the latest, the quarterfinal series were to be reduced from the standard best-of-five system to best-of-three. The best-of-five semifinals and finals and the bronze medal match remain unchanged.
In an unexpected twist, on 4 March the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) announced that the 2021 Women's Worlds were to be postponed until 6–16 May 2021. As the first games of the Naisten Liiga quarterfinals had already been played the day before, the playoff structure announced on 27 February remained in place following announcement of the postponement.
| Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| 1 | Kiekko-Espoo | 2 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Team Kuortane | 0 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Team Kuortane | 0 | 1 | Kiekko-Espoo | 3 | | | |
| | | | 4 | Ilves Tampere | 1 | | | |
| 4 | Ilves Tampere | 2 | 4 | Ilves Tampere | 1 | | | |
| 5 | HPK Hämeenlinna | 0 | | | | | | |
| 5 | HPK Hämeenlinna | 0 | | | | | Kiekko-Espoo | 3 |
| | | | | | | | KalPa Kuopio | 1 |
| 2 | KalPa Kuopio | 2 | | | | | | | KalPa Kuopio | 1 |
| 7 | Kärpät Oulu | 0 | | | |
| 7 | Kärpät Oulu | 0 | 2 | KalPa Kuopio | 3 | Bronze medal game | Bronze medal game | Bronze medal game |
| | | | 3 | HIFK Helsinki | 2 |
| 3 | HIFK Helsinki | 2 | 3 | HIFK Helsinki | 2 | | HIFK Helsinki | 2 |
| 6 | TPS Turku | 0 | | | | 4 | Ilves Tampere | 1 |

## Qualification series

Two teams from the 2020 qualification series, RoKi and Lukko, returned to the relegation tournament in 2021, joined by Vaasan Sport, the eighth seed of the 2020 playoffs, and JYP, the team promoted mid-season to the lower division series.
After amassing 22 points and a 2.20 points average in the lower division series, RoKi needed just one three-point (regulation) victory in the qualification series to amass an unbeatable point advantage and retain their place in the Naisten Liiga. They earned the necessary three points in the first match of the series, against JYP. Skaters Moona Keskisarja and Jenna Pirttijärvi both ranked in the top ten of the series for point totals and their goaltender with the best save percentage was Olivia Last, at .910, and best goals against average was Janita Haapasaari, with 2.50.
JYP had very little hope of qualifying for the 2021–22 Naisten Liiga season, after concluding the lower division series with just four points in ten games. Over the six games of the qualification series, they were able to collect points only in one overtime victory and two overtime losses and were conclusively relegated to the Naisten Mestis. Their top point scorer was Anna Vanhala, one of four remaining players from 2015–16 JYP roster that won the Finnish Championship, and their best goaltender was Juuli Kivimäki.
The second qualifying position was hotly contested by Lukko and Sport, as the teams came out of the lower division series with only one point separating them.

### Standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Postseason placement |
| 1 | RoKi | 16 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 55 | 42 | +13 | 31 | Qualify for Naisten Liiga |
| 2 | Sport | 16 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 53 | 59 | −6 | 25 | Qualify for Naisten Liiga |
| 3 | Lukko | 16 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 40 | 60 | −20 | 15 | Relegated to Naisten Mestis |
| 4 | JYP | 16 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 38 | 76 | −38 | 8 | Relegated to Naisten Mestis |
Official ranking
| Pos | Team | Pld | Pts | PpG |
| 1 | RoKi | 16 | 31 | 1.94 |
| 2 | Sport | 16 | 25 | 1.56 |
| 3 | Lukko | 16 | 15 | 0.94 |
| 4 | JYP | 16 | 8 | 0.50 |

### Statistics

Scoring leaders
The following players led scoring in the qualification series at the conclusion of the series on 21 March 2021.
| | Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1 | Susanna Viitala | Sport | 6 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 2 |
| 2 | Ella Harjula | Lukko | 6 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 2 |
| 3 | Paulina Suoniemi | Sport | 6 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 2 |
| 4 | Maija Koski | Lukko | 6 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 0 |
| 5 | Noora Mylläri | Sport | 6 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 2 |
| 5 | Julia Hagnäs | Sport | 6 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 6 |
| 7 | Moona Keskisarja | RoKi | 6 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 0 |
| 8 | Anna Vanhala | JYP | 6 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 0 |
| 8 | Jenna Pirttijärvi | RoKi | 6 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 18 |
| 10 | Aliisa Toivonen | Lukko | 6 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 0 |
Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders played at least one match in the qualification series, sorted by save percentage.
| | Player | Team | GP | TOI | W | L | SA | GA | SO | SV% | GA60 |
| 1 | Katrina Saarenmaa | Lukko | 1 | 65:00 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 2 | 0 | .946 | 1.85 |
| 2 | Melisa Mörönen | Sport | 5 | 300:31 | 5 | 0 | 145 | 12 | 0 | .924 | 2.40 |
| 3 | Juuli Kivimäki | JYP | 4 | 252:16 | 0 | 2 | 156 | 13 | 0 | .923 | 3.09 |
| 4 | Oona Mäki | Sport | 1 | 60:00 | 1 | 0 | 31 | 3 | 0 | .912 | 3.00 |
| 5 | Olivia Last | RoKi | 2 | 119:40 | 1 | 1 | 71 | 7 | 0 | .910 | 3.51 |
| 6 | Noora Tonteri | JYP | 1 | 57:20 | 0 | 1 | 38 | 4 | 0 | .905 | 4.19 |
| 7 | Johanna Niemi | Lukko | 5 | 310:04 | 0 | 3 | 175 | 19 | 0 | .902 | 3.68 |
| 8 | Janita Haapasaari | RoKi | 2 | 120:06 | 2 | 0 | 42 | 5 | 0 | .894 | 2.50 |
| 9 | Janika Järvikari | RoKi | 2 | 123:29 | 0 | 1 | 58 | 8 | 0 | .879 | 3.89 |
| 10 | Riina Hirvonen | JYP | 1 | 57:24 | 0 | 1 | 34 | 6 | 0 | .850 | 6.27 |

## Awards and honours
### Finnish Ice Hockey Association awards

* Riikka Nieminen Award (Player of the Year): Elisa Holopainen, KalPa
* Tuula Puputti Award (Best goaltender): Anni Keisala, Ilves
* Päivi Halonen Award (Best defenceman): Nelli Laitinen, Kiekko-Espoo
* Katja Riipi Award (Best forward): Elisa Holopainen, KalPa
* Noora Räty Award (Rookie of the Year): Anna-Kaisa Antti-Roiko, Kärpät
* Marianne Ihalainen Award (Top point scorer): Michaela Pejzlová, HIFK
* Tiia Reima Award (Top goal scorer): Matilda Nilsson, KalPa
* Sari Fisk Award (Best plus/minus): Emilia Vesa, Kiekko-Espoo
* Emma Laaksonen Award (Fair-play player): Johanna Juutilainen, KalPa
* Student Athlete Award: Anni Hietaharju, HIFK
* U18 Student Athlete Award: Nea Tervonen, Kuortane
* Hannu Saintula Award (Coach of the Year): Saara Niemi, HIFK
* Karoliina Rantamäki Award (MVP of the Playoffs): Tiia Pajarinen, Kiekko-Espoo
* Anu Hirvonen Award (Best referee): Anniina Nurmi
* Johanna Suban Award (Best linesman): Tiina Saarimäki
Source: Finnish Ice Hockey Association, Jääkiekkokirja 2022
Czech forward Michaela Pejzlová of HIFK Naiset claimed the Marianne Ihalainen Award as regular season scoring champion, the first international player to ever win a league award. KalPa Naiset winger Matilda Nilsson was the top goalscorer of the regular season and became the second KalPa player to receive the Tiia Reima Award.

### All-Star Teams

All-Star Team
* Goaltender: Anni Keisala, Ilves
* Defenceman: Nelli Laitinen, Kiekko-Espoo
* Defenceman: Anna Kilponen, Ilves
* Winger: Elisa Holopainen, KalPa
* Center: Estelle Duvin, TPS
* Winger: Matilda Nilsson, KalPa
All-Star Team II
* Goaltender: Tiina Ranne, KalPa
* Defenceman: Athéna Locatelli, HIFK
* Defenceman: Krista Parkkonen, HIFK
* Winger: Emilia Vesa, Kiekko-Espoo
* Center: Michaela Pejzlová, HIFK
* Winger: Jenna Suokko, Ilves
Source: Finnish Ice Hockey Association, Jääkiekkokirja 2022

### Player of the Month

* September 2020: Elisa Holopainen (F), KalPa Kuopio
* October 2020: Nelli Laitinen (D), Kiekko-Espoo
* November 2020: Estelle Duvin (F), TPS Turku
* December 2020: not awarded (no games played)
* January 2021: Anni Keisala (G), Ilves Tampere
* February 2021: Emilia Vesa (F), Kiekko-Espoo

## Milestones

* On 19 September 2020, HPK forward and captain Riikka Noronen played her 600th game in the Naisten Liiga, becoming the first player in league history to reach the milestone.
* On 17 January 2021, Ilves forward Emilia Varpula and KalPa defenceman Eveliina Nurmi played their 200th games in the Naisten Liiga.