Antti Pennanen Coaching History

Antti Pennanen is a Finnish ice hockey coach and former player. Born on February 5, 1979, in Hausjärvi, Finland, he played as a forward for HPK and Hyvinkään Ahmat before transitioning to coaching. Pennanen has built a strong reputation as a head coach, previously guiding teams like Jukurit and HPK in Finland’s top league. In his coaching career, he guided HPK to a Liiga championship in 2019. In addition to club hockey, he has played a key role in international competition, serving as the head coach of Finland’s men’s national junior ice hockey team. As of 2025, he is the head coach of Ilves in the Finnish Liiga. Antti Pennanen has been named the head coach of Finland for the 2025 4 Nation Face-off in the NHL.

Antti Pennanen's coaching career

Antti Pennanen began as an assistant coach with HIFK in 2011 before moving to KalPa in 2013. His first major success came with Jukurit, where he served as head coach from 2014 to 2016, leading the team to back-to-back Mestis championships.

In 2016, Pennanen took over as head coach of HPK as per his LinkedIn profile, where he helped the team to a Liiga championship in 2019. His efforts earned him the prestigious Kalevi Numminen Trophy as the league’s top coach. His international experience also flourished, contributing to Finland’s gold medal victories at the 2016 World Junior Championship and the 2019 IIHF World Championship as an assistant coach.

Pennanen has also experienced as head coach of Finland’s U-20 national team for the 2021 and 2022 World Junior Championships as per his LinkedIn profile. In 2022, he took the responsibility of a head coach for the Ilves in Finnish Liiga. Pennanen will guide Finland in the 2025 4 nation face-off tournament organized by the NHL.