# Aurora Borealis Cup

The Aurora Borealis Cup (Finnish: Aurora Borealis -malja) is the trophy awarded by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association to the victorious team of the Auroraliiga playoffs, the Finnish Champion in women's ice hockey.

## Project

Christopher Shapardanov, Canadian Ambassador to Finland, first conceived of the Aurora Borealis Cup in September 2009, after a visit to the Finnish Ice Hockey Museum (Finnish: Suomen Jääkiekkomuseo) in Tampere and conversation with Jyrki Lumme and Kimmo Leinonen, chairman of the Finnish Ice Hockey Museum Association (Finnish: Suomen Jääkiekkomuseoyhdistys ry). The project was motivated by a desire to honor the quality of play in Auroraliiga and as a symbol of support in the promotion of women's ice hockey.
The project was then commissioned through the fundraising efforts of the Finnish-Canadian community, with significant financial contributions from Osuuspankki. Several Canadian former players, including Sami Jo Small and Darren Boyko, contributed to fundraising efforts and other aspects of the project.
The design and manufacture was executed by Toronto-based Awardco. The completed Aurora Borealis Cup was presented by Ambassador Shapardanov and received by Kalervo Kummola, Chairman of the Finnish Ice Hockey Association, on 21 March 2011. An exact replica of the Aurora Borealis Cup was also given to the Suomen Jääkiekkomuseo, where it's on permanent display in a place of prominence opposite the original Kanada-malja.

### Design

The design of the trophy pays homage to the natural and cultural similarities between Finland and Canada. Both Arctic nations are renowned for the ability to observe the Aurora Borealis, also called the Northern Lights, after which the cup is named. Likewise, the choice of materials celebrate the countries' natural affinity. The metal elements of the trophy are Canadian silver, the wood is maple, and a ring of labradorite circles the foot of the cup. The cup itself depicts the Northern Lights over a coniferous forest landscape. Text documenting the donation of the trophy is engraved in four languages on the upper tier of the base to highlight the official bilingualism of each country; the text appears in Finnish and Swedish, the official languages of Finland, and in English and French, the official languages of Canada. The lower tiers of the base feature 60 metal plates, originally intended to be engraved with the names of the champion teams until the plates were filled in 2070.

## Championship history

Prior to the introduction of the Aurora Borealis Cup, the Naisten SM-sarja champion received the Sammon -malja. The Sammon -malja was first awarded in 1983 at the conclusion of the inaugural Naisten SM-sarja season to Helsingin Jääkiekkoklubi (HJK) and it was used continuously through the 2009–10 season. The trophy was retired in the spring of 2011 and is now on display at the Suomen Jääkiekkomuseo.
As champions of the 2011 Naisten SM-sarja playoffs, HPK Hämeenlinna were the first team to receive the Aurora Borealis Cup.

### Finnish Champions by season

Notes: As they are various names of the same franchise, the records of Espoon Kiekkoseura (EKS), Espoo Blues, and Espoo United are all included in the history of Kiekko-Espoo. The club Jyväskylän Palloilijat Hockey Team (JyP HT) updated its name to JYP in 1997 and the record of JyP HT is included in the history of JYP.
| Season | Champion | Runner-up | Third Place |
| Sammon -malja ||||
| 1983 | HJK Helsinki | Ilves Tampere | EVU Vantaa |
| 1984 | HJK Helsinki | EVU Vantaa | Ilves Tampere |
| 1985 | Ilves Tampere | EVU Vantaa | HJK Helsinki |
| 1986 | Ilves Tampere | HJK Helsinki | Vaasan Sport |
| 1987 | Ilves Tampere | EVU Vantaa | Shakers Kerava |
| 1988 | Ilves Tampere | EVU Vantaa | HIFK Helsinki |
| 1989 | EVU Vantaa | Ilves Tampere | HIFK Helsinki |
| 1990 | Ilves Tampere | EVU Vantaa | SaiPa Lappeenranta |
| 1991 | Ilves Tampere | Shakers Kerava | EKS Espoo |
| 1992 | Ilves Tampere | Shakers Kerava | EKS Espoo |
| 1993 | Ilves Tampere | Shakers Kerava | Kiekko-Espoo |
| 1994 | Shakers Kerava | Ilves Tampere | Kiekko-Espoo |
| 1995 | Shakers Kerava | Ilves Tampere | KalPa Kuopio |
| 1996 | Shakers Kerava | Oulun Kärpät | KalPa Kuopio |
| 1997 | JyP HT Jyväskylä | Shakers Kerava | Kiekko-Espoo |
| 1998 | JYP Jyväskylä | Oulun Kärpät | Kiekko-Espoo |
| 1999 | Espoo Blues | JYP Jyväskylä | Ilves Tampere |
| 2000 | Espoo Blues | Oulun Kärpät | Ilves Tampere |
| 2001 | Espoo Blues | Oulun Kärpät | Ilves Tampere |
| 2002 | Espoo Blues | IHK Helsinki | Oulun Kärpät |
| 2003 | Espoo Blues | Oulun Kärpät | Ilves Tampere |
| 2004 | Espoo Blues | Ilves Tampere | Oulun Kärpät |
| 2005 | Espoo Blues | Ilves Tampere | Oulun Kärpät |
| 2006 | Ilves Tampere | Oulun Kärpät | Espoo Blues |
| 2007 | Espoo Blues | Oulun Kärpät | IHK Helsinki |
| 2008 | Espoo Blues | Ilves Tampere | Oulun Kärpät |
| 2009 | Espoo Blues | Ilves Tampere | HPK Hämeenlinna |
| 2010 | Ilves Tampere | Espoo Blues | HPK Hämeenlinna |
| Aurora Borealis Cup ||||
| 2011 | HPK Hämeenlinna | Ilves Tampere | Oulun Kärpät |
| 2012 | Oulun Kärpät | Ilves Tampere | HPK Hämeenlinna |
| 2013 | Espoo Blues | JYP Jyväskylä | Oulun Kärpät |
| 2014 | Espoo Blues | JYP Jyväskylä | HPK Hämeenlinna |
| 2015 | Espoo Blues | JYP Jyväskylä | Ilves Tampere |
| 2016 | JYP Jyväskylä | HPK Hämeenlinna | Espoo Blues |
| 2017 | Oulun Kärpät | Espoo United | KalPa Kuopio |
| 2018 | Oulun Kärpät | Ilves Tampere | Team Kuortane |
| 2019 | Espoo Blues | Ilves Tampere | Oulun Kärpät |
| 2020 | Post-season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic. | Post-season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic. | Post-season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic. |
| 2021 | Kiekko-Espoo | KalPa Kuopio | HIFK Helsinki |
| 2022 | Kiekko-Espoo | HIFK Helsinki | Oulun Kärpät |
| 2023 | HIFK Helsinki | Kiekko-Espoo | KalPa Kuopio |
| 2024 | HIFK Helsinki | Kiekko-Espoo | KalPa Kuopio |
* ↑ The 2019–20 Naisten Liiga post-season was cancelled by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association on 12 March 2020, citing public health concerns regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. The Aurora Borealis Cup Finnish Championship finals, between Kiekko-Espoo and KalPa, and the Finnish Championship bronze medal game, between Team Kuortane and Kärpät, were scheduled to begin on 14 March 2020. With the cancellation of the season, neither the Aurora Borealis Cup nor any Finnish Championship medals were awarded for the 2019–20 season.
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