Head coach Sami Kapanen and Pelicans get out of their slump together

/ Lahti News in English

Head coach Sami Kapanen and Pelicans get out of their slump together

The picture shows head coach Sami Kapanen, head coach of the Pelicans team logo. In the background you can see the benches of the audience and the structures of the hall.
The daily team coaching has felt very good for Sami Kapase. Last autumn, however, things were different when he identified himself as suffering from depression-like symptoms.

The Lahti Ice Hockey League team has plenty to play for in the final matches of the regular season. Coaching has also brought meaning to Kapanen’s everyday life.

Kapanen was hired in early February, and since then the team has lost just one match after a long losing streak.

The head coach also praises the coaching team, which has welcomed him with ease.

The Lahti side still have eight games left in the regular season, but Kapanen doesn’t want to go forward thinking about Pelicans’ playoff hopes or relegation fears.

According to Kapanen, it is a good idea to focus on things that are under the control of the team, that is, to run piece at a time.

– If we are able to play as evenly as possible near our own maximum, the better probability we have to achieve something good.

Pelicans is currently in 14th place in the standings.

Salary will be based on market value

For Pelicans, the silver medal team of the previous two seasons, this season has also been economically challenging. The club boss opened, for example, in late January.

Kapanen himself was active in the Pelicans with his coaching pest. In social media, some people have wondered if he is almost free.

-Yes, everyone wants to get a payment according to their market value. I’ve been out of the coaching circles for five years, so my request has probably been a little more moderate, but no one is working for free. I also know the financial situation of the club, says Sami Kapanen.

Pictured is Pelicans' new head coach Sami Kapanen.
Sami Kapanen’s head coaching contract with Pelicans also covers the 2025-2026 season.

Club coaching has now also brought more sense of significance to Kapanen’s life.

Previous work as a development coach for reservations and professional players in Europe, the NHL club Philadelphia Flyers in Europe, focused on individuals.

– I was really down without a greater feeling of fulfillment. I was watching the game, but I didn’t get the most out of it and it was exactly the same team won. I was watching individuals and wrote reports about them. Last fall, it started to appear that I had symptoms of depression, Kapanen says.

*Pelicans head coach Sami Kapanen tells this audio clip, among other things, how the new coaching work brought new meaning to life and how the family’s WhatsApp group reacted to Kapanen’s Lahti pest.*