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Deep-dives into NHL Finns and pure Finnish hockey culture. 100% original behind-the-scenes stories from an independent blogger.

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Duck's captain Mikael Granlund visited a Finnish podcast

Anaheim Ducks captain Mikael Granlund and the head coach of the Finnish national ice hockey team, Antti Pennanen, appeared in a podcast recorded in the summer. The topic of the episode was "The relationship between the coach and the player." Mikael Granlund also served as the captain of the Leijonat at the Milan Olympics. For Granlund, it has always been important that the coach coaches and the players play. This creates a sense of security within the team, and the hierarchy is clear to everyone. The coach always makes the decisions and preferably also creates the line combinations. Granlund shared an example from his career when he really disliked it when one of the coaches once asked how the forward lines should be constructed. In his opinion, that is not the job of the players. In his role as captain, Granlund wants to lead by example on the ice, and in his view, on-ice performances were the most important metric for all activities. The captain's job is to support other players in their own roles and communicate the common goal. According to Pennanen, Granlund was able as a player to analyze, for example at the Olympics, the level and development of Finland's play. The duo has kept in touch before and after national team tournaments. Pennanen praised Granlund's playing skills. In tight spots and under pressure, Granlund was always at his best. Other players also respected Granlund, and as a player, he dared to address shortcomings. Still, Granlund had a twinkle in his eye and a good sense of humor. Granlund, in turn, praised Pennanen's strengths in understanding the game and creating the big picture. Finland's style of play was Pennanen's handiwork, and it brought a competitive advantage both at the Olympics and in other national team games. According to Pennanen, Mikael Granlund has always been really good at adapting, meaning he has had the capacity to adapt. A long career has required adaptation, and for example, skating skills have been successfully developed, even though it has always been Granlund's weakness. After moving to the @NHL , Granlund had realized himself that he was not cutting it. He was forced to get his training in order and invest in different things. According to him, that was a proper reality check. Granlund continued about the coach's responsibility to make decisions and be the ultimate authority in the team. Naturally, things were discussed and reviewed with the leadership group, but the coach had to be able to make decisions and explain how things were done in the team or the game and what the team's strategy was. The player's focus had to be on playing and concentration had to be on that. In Pennanen's coaching style, however, the player was given the opportunity to be heard, among other things in one-on-one conversations. In those situations, the coach's job was to listen rather than advise. Pennanen had his own style where the player always gets to decide for themselves at what level the discussion is held and what topics are discussed. In those situations, things went on the player's terms, but otherwise the coach always leads the team. The duo also talked about the commitment of Finns to the team's goals. According to Granlund, Finns would stand right in the neutral zone for the whole game if the coach told them to and if it would win games. Finland was also always ready to figure out ways by which they could beat top ice hockey nations. The coaching staff of the Finnish national team always considered competitive advantages, but wanted to leave room for the players' own decisions on the ice through a simple playing system. Every ice hockey team contained different personalities and players. According to Granlund, especially in the NHL, players understand well that not everyone is on the same footing and there are differences in playing skills. One is better at scoring goals and at the same time takes liberties in the defensive end. According to Pennanen as well, a good coaching staff knows how to handle this matter correctly and talk about it openly to the team at the same time and resolve line-up and deployment issues. At the end of the episode, the duo also talked about media attention. The vibe inside the locker room might be completely different from what was discussed outside the rink. Because of that, neither of them could feel pressure from the media anymore. At best, the locker room was a sanctuary where it was good to be. In ice hockey, the difference between winning and losing was so small that sometimes luck might decide the game. Both Pennanen and Granlund agreed on that. Granlund sent a recommendation to the listeners to watch Jose Mourinho's documentary on Netflix. It reportedly taught a lot about coaching.Oct 20, 2026

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