PWHL News

Home

Quizzes

Newsletter

Ronja Savolainen, Ottawa Charge (Photo credit: PWHL)

Finland Announces Women’s Roster for 2026 Olympics

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Owen Hillman | Last updated Jan 10, 2026 2:10 PM ET

Team Finland has announced the women’s roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy. It will be the first time the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) has players in the Olympics.

The PWHL will go on a brief hiatus from Jan. 29 to Feb. 25 to make way for the 2026 Olympics from Feb. 5-19.

Finland will be looking to win the gold medal for the first time in the Olympics. They won the bronze medal in 2022, but with several PWHL players on their roster, they will be looking for more.

*An asterisk denotes that they were also on the 2022 Winter Olympics team.

Forwards:

Elisa Holopainen (Frölunda HC, SDHL)*

Michelle Karvinen (Vancouver Goldeneyes, PWHL)*

Ida Kuoppala (Skellefteå AIK, SDHL)

Julia Liikala (Hockey Club Ambrì-Piotta Girls, SDHL)*

Petra Nieminen (Luleå HF/MSSK, SDHL)*

Emma Nuutinen (Kiekko-Espoo Naiset, Auroraliiga)

Jenniina Nylund (Brynäs IF, SDHL)*

Julia Schalin (Mercyhurst, Atlantic Hockey America)

Susanna Tapani (Boston Fleet, PWHL)*

Noora Tulus (Brynäs IF, SDHL)*

Viivi Vainikka (Luleå HF/MSSK, SDHL)*

Sanni Vanhanen (Ohio State, NCAA)

Emilia Vesa (Frölunda HC, SDHL)*

The forward group brings a lot of chemistry and continuity with it. There are two sets of teammates (Holopainen/Vesa and Nylund/Tulus) who make up this roster, and nine of the forwards are returners.

Two forwards come from the PWHL. Tapani has three goals and four assists in ten games with the Boston Fleet, while Karvinen has a goal and two assists in 11 games this season.

Two more are in collegiate hockey. This season, Schalin has scored eight goals and notched 15 assists with Mercyhurst University, while Vanhanen has 11 goals and eight assists through 21 games with the Buckeyes this season.

Defenders

Jenni Hiirikoski (Luleå HF/MSSK, SDHL)*

Sini Karjalainen (Skellefteå AIK, SDHL)*

Nelli Laitinen (Minnesota, NCAA)*

Sanni Rantala (Frölunda HC, SDHL)*

Ronja Savolainen (Ottawa Charge, PWHL)*

Elli Suoranta (HPK Kiekkonaiset, Auroraliiga)

Siiri Yrjola (St. Cloud State, NCAA)

The continuity is even more concentrated with the defense, with five returners from the 2022 Beijing squad. Savolainen is the only one from the PWHL, racking up two goals and two assists in 11 games with the Charge in 2025-26.

Laitinen and Yrjola play in college as well. Laitinen has 10 goals and 14 assists in 21 games with the Golden Gophers, while Yrjola has a goal and seven assists in 21 games with St. Cloud State this season.

Goalies

Sanni Ahola (Ottawa Charge, PWHL)

Anni Keisala (HPK Kiekkonaiset, Auroraliiga)*

Emilia Kyrkko (St. Cloud State, NCAA)

Ahola and Savolainen are teammates on the Charge, with Ahola having a loss and a .870 save percentage this season as a rookie.

Keisala is the only returner on the team, and with a 2.56 goals-against average and .915 save percentage through seven games in the Olympics in 2022, she should have the early lead to be the starter.

Conclusion

Finland has a lot of returning pieces on the roster, so the expectations are to at least finish with a bronze medal. Nieminen and Tapani will more than likely lead the forwards in scoring, each registering eight points in the 2022 Olympics. Hiirikoski, Laitinen, and Savolainen will eat a lot of minutes on defense, and Keisala was very consistent in net for Finland last year.

However, the new arrivals could add a spark to push Finland over the top. Forward Ida Kuoppala leads Skellefteå in scoring this season, with 22 points (nine goals and 13 assists) in 29 games. Nuutinen leads not just her team, but the entire league (Auroraliiga) in points this season, with an insane 58 points (24 goals, 34 assists) in 24 games with Kiekko-Espoo. Finland has bronze medals from 1998, 2010, 2018, and 2022, but their sights are set for the first Olympic gold medal in team history.