Vålerenga Ishockey

Vålerenga Ishockey is a Norwegian professional ice hockey team based in Oslo, Norway. Vålerenga has been the dominant force in Norwegian hockey since the 1960s, claiming 26 national championships and 29 regular season titles. Their old home arena, located in central-eastern Oslo, was Jordal Amfi, built for the 1952 Winter Olympics. In 2020, Vålerenga moved in to their new arena at Jordal.
== History ==
=== Early days ===
Although the parent club Vålerengens Idrettsforening was founded in 1913, the history of Vålerenga Ishockey starts in 1947, when the junior team participated in the national junior championships for the first time. In the 50s, the junior team won the national junior championships five years in a row.
=== First dynasty (1960–1973) ===
Vålerenga won their first national championship in 1960, taking over the throne from local rivals Gamlebyen. More championships were won in 1962 and 1963. From 1965 to 1971, Vålerenga won the championship an incredible seven times in a row, a feat not repeated in Norwegian hockey since. Notable players from this era include Arne "Mikkel" Mikkelsen, Steinar "Bjølle" Bjølbak, Tor "Jern-Gustav" Gundersen, and notably, Roy "Sleipern" Jansen. Another title was added in 1973, but this also marked the end of the first dynasty as the club faced a generational change.
=== A new generation (1982–1994) ===
Ten years went by before Vålerenga could celebrate another championship, in 1983. A new generation had emerged, and players such as Jim Marthinsen, Roy Johansen, Geir Myhre, Tor Helge "Totto" Eikeland, Bjørn Kolsrud, Arne Billkvam and Jon Magne Karlstad would go on to become club legends. In 1988, Vålerenga won their 15th title. The next season saw the debut of Espen Knutsen, who would later become the first Vålerenga product to play in the National Hockey League.
=== Recent era ===
This marked the start of another dynasty for Vålerenga and the club added several more titles in the 1990s. Kent Forsberg became head coach in 1994 and invited his son Peter and Markus Näslund to play a friendly match for the club during the lockout season in the NHL. The 20th national championship was won in 1999. Notable players from this era include Morten Ask, Kenneth Larsen, and Kjell Richard "Ricky" Nygaard, along with Swedish imports such as Johan Brummer, Patric Englund and Niklas Gällstedt. Six more championships were added after 2000, the last being won in 2009. Vålerenga were in talks to join the Kontinental Hockey League in 2014, but the plans didn't go through.
Vålerenga's home arena through six decades, Jordal Amfi, was demolished in January 2017 and replaced by new arena, completed in the fall of 2020 after construction delays.
==Honors==
* Norwegian Champions (26): 1960, 1962–3, 1965–71, 1973, 1982, 1985, 1987–8, 1991–3, 1998–9, 2001, 2003, 2005–7, 2009
* Regular Seasons (30): 1961–62, 1962–63, 1963–64, 1964–65, 1965–66, 1966–67, 1967–68, 1968–69, 1969–70, 1970–71, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1984–85, 1987–88, 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1997–98, 1998–1999, 1999–00, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2018–19
==Season-by-season results==
Norwegian Champions	Regular Season Champions	Promoted	Relegated
Season 	League 	Regular seasonCode explanation; GP—Games Played, W—Wins, L—Losses, OTW—Overtime/Shootout wins, OTL—Overtime/Shootout losses, GF—Goals For, GA—Goals Against, Pts—Points	Regular seasonCode explanation; GP—Games Played, W—Wins, L—Losses, OTW—Overtime/Shootout wins, OTL—Overtime/Shootout losses, GF—Goals For, GA—Goals Against, Pts—Points	Regular seasonCode explanation; GP—Games Played, W—Wins, L—Losses, OTW—Overtime/Shootout wins, OTL—Overtime/Shootout losses, GF—Goals For, GA—Goals Against, Pts—Points	Regular seasonCode explanation; GP—Games Played, W—Wins, L—Losses, OTW—Overtime/Shootout wins, OTL—Overtime/Shootout losses, GF—Goals For, GA—Goals Against, Pts—Points	Regular seasonCode explanation; GP—Games Played, W—Wins, L—Losses, OTW—Overtime/Shootout wins, OTL—Overtime/Shootout losses, GF—Goals For, GA—Goals Against, Pts—Points	Regular seasonCode explanation; GP—Games Played, W—Wins, L—Losses, OTW—Overtime/Shootout wins, OTL—Overtime/Shootout losses, GF—Goals For, GA—Goals Against, Pts—Points	Regular seasonCode explanation; GP—Games Played, W—Wins, L—Losses, OTW—Overtime/Shootout wins, OTL—Overtime/Shootout losses, GF—Goals For, GA—Goals Against, Pts—Points	Regular seasonCode explanation; GP—Games Played, W—Wins, L—Losses, OTW—Overtime/Shootout wins, OTL—Overtime/Shootout losses, GF—Goals For, GA—Goals Against, Pts—Points	Regular seasonCode explanation; GP—Games Played, W—Wins, L—Losses, OTW—Overtime/Shootout wins, OTL—Overtime/Shootout losses, GF—Goals For, GA—Goals Against, Pts—Points	Postseason
Season 	League 	GP 	W 	L 	OTW 	OTL 	GF 	GA 	Pts 	Finish 	Postseason
2009–10	Eliteserien	48 	25 	9 	9 	5 	162 	107 	98 	1st 	Lost in Finals, 2–4 (Stavanger)
2010–11	Eliteserien	45 	25 	10 	5 	5 	140 	94 	90 	3rd 	Lost in Quarter-finals, 1–4 (Lørenskog)
2011–12	Eliteserien	45 	28 	14 	1 	2 	209 	131 	88 	3rd 	Lost in Semi-finals, 2–4 (Lørenskog)
2012–13	Eliteserien	45 	30 	9 	3 	3 	184 	124 	99 	1st 	Lost in Finals, 2–4 (Stavanger)
2013–14	Eliteserien	45 	32 	8 	2 	3 	195 	95 	103 	1st 	Lost in Finals, 2–4 (Stavanger)
2014–15	Eliteserien	45 	24 	15 	2 	4 	182 	129 	74 	5th 	Lost in Semi-finals, 0–4 (Stavanger)
2015–16	Eliteserien	45 	21 	16 	6 	2 	122 	98 	77 	5th 	Lost in Semi-finals, 1–4 (Lørenskog)
2016–17	Eliteserien	45 	20 	16 	4 	5 	135 	111 	73 	5th 	Lost in Quarter-finals, 2–4 (Frisk Asker)
2017–18	Eliteserien	45 	18 	17 	5 	5 	144 	132 	69 	5th 	Lost in Quarter-finals, 1–4 (Lillehammer)
2018–19	Eliteserien	48 	32 	7 	3 	6 	196 	102 	108 	1st 	Lost in Semi-finals, 2–4 (Frisk Asker)
2019–20	Eliteserien	45 	22 	16 	4 	3 	125 	107 	77 	3rd 	Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2020–21	Eliteserien	25 	16 	7 	0 	2 	84 	67 	50 	4th 	Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021–22	Eliteserien	42 	20 	10 	6 	6 	147 	102 	78 	4th 	Lost in Quarter-finals, 2–4 (Storhamar)
2022–23	Eliteserien	45 	25 	8 	7 	5 	162 	100 	94 	3rd 	Lost in Semi-finals, 2–4 (Storhamar)
Source:
==References==
==External links==
* Official pages
Category:Ice hockey teams in Norway