Kiekko-Espoo Naiset

The team entered Naisten SM-sarja (now Naisten Liiga) in the 1990–91 season under the name Espoon Kiekkoseura or EKS. The two seasons played as EKS were an impressive showing for the newcomers and each resulted in a bronze medal, one in the 1990–91 season after defeating Ässät and one in the 1991–92 season after defeating KalPa.

Several EKS players also played for the bronze medal winning Finnish women's national team at the 1992 IIHF World Championship including Liisa Karikoski, Katri-Helena Luomajoki, and Hanna Teerijoki.[2]

In 1992 EKS was renamed Kiekko-Espoo, the same name as its brother-team in the Liiga. The team continued to be held to bronze or lower finishes, making it to five bronze medal series in six years and winning four of them (1993, 1994, 1997, 1998).

The team was renamed Espoo Blues in 1998, continuing the trend of sharing the name of its brother-team in the Liiga, which also renamed Espoo Blues in that year. The name change unwittingly marked the beginning of a "golden age" for the team. Starting with their first SM-sarja gold medal in 1999, after achieving victory over JYP Jyväskylä in the finals, they went on to win a staggering seven consecutive championships (1999–2005) and a total of thirteen championships in eighteen years. The Blues were kept off the SM-sarja medal podium only three times in the 1998–2016 span; in addition to their championship titles, they earned the team's first silver medal in 2009 and two more bronze medals in 2006 and 2016.

The Espoo Blues were also strong competitors at international tournaments in this period, earning medals at six IIHF European Women's Champions Cups: three silver medals (2005, 2007-08, 2009-10) and three bronze medals (2008-09, 2013–14, 2014–15).[3]

In March 2016 Jääkiekko Espoo Oy, the parent club of both the Espoo Blues of the Naisten Liiga and Espoo Blues of the Liiga, declared bankruptcy with estimated liabilities of approximately €3 million.[4] In response, Jussi Salonoja, a Finnish millionaire and film director who had previously owned the Espoo Blues franchise from 2002–2012, created a new club and organization called Espoo United Oy,[5] stating that he was "committed to supporting hockey in Espoo."[6] The Espoo Blues men's and women's basketball and ice hockey teams would play for Espoo United.

For the 2016–17 season the Espoo United women's ice hockey team played in the Naisten SM-sarja and won silver in the 2017 Finnish Championship. The Espoo United men's team played in the Mestis, the league below the premier-level Liiga, where they won bronze in the playoffs.

On 15 August 2017 Salonoja announced that the Espoo United was abandoning its women's ice hockey and basketball teams for financial reasons.[7] “The reason is twofold: the men's teams' budgets are far greater than those of women's teams, so their running is more demanding, but on the other hand, [the men's teams] are more interesting to sponsors and audiences,” Salonoja said.[8][9]

The future of women's ice hockey team was left uncertain and many possible solutions were proposed, including being acquired by HIFK[10] or merging with Espoo Blues Juniorit (a junior club with strong ties to the franchise).[8]

In September 2017 the Finnish Ice Hockey Association announced that it had supported the creation of an independent association, Ysikoppi ry, to oversee the team and had given its approval for the team to compete in the upcoming 2017–18 season under the name Espoo Blues.[11][12]

As of 10 October 2023[13][14]

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No.	Nat	Player	Pos	S/G	Age	Acquired	Birthplace
35		Minja Drufva	G	L	21	2018	Lohja, Uusimaa, Finland
13		Ada Eronen	D	L	19	2018	Espoo, Uusimaa, Finland
24		Erica Grönlund	F	L	18	2021
19		Tinja Haukijärvi	F	L	26	2017	Järvenpää, Uusimaa, Finland
7		Zaida Holmström	F	L	27	2022	Oulu, North Ostrobothnia, Finland
27		Riikka Järvinen	D	L	23	2022	Kotka, Kymenlaakso, Finland
77		Bianca Kanerva	D	L	18	2020	Kirkkonummi, Uusimaa, Finland
17		Nea Katajamäki (A)	F	R	26	2013	Espoo, Uusimaa, Finland
12		Elli Kemppainen	F	–	17	2023
16		Nea Koskipalo	F	L	20	2022
62		Nia Käyhty	F	L	18	2023	Nurmijärvi, Uusimaa, Finland
88		Siru Lehtopelto (A)	D	L	27	2014	Lohja, Uusimaa, Finland
61		Emma Nuutinen	F	L	26	2023	Vantaa, Uusimaa, Finland
33		Heta Paasilinna	D	–	18	2020
70		Lilli Packalen (L)	G	L	19	2023
31		Tiia Pajarinen	G	L	25	2019	Polvijärvi, North Karelia, Finland
61		Veera Pöntinen	D	–	18	2023
89		Riia Saarni (L)	D	R	16	2023	Lohja, Uusimaa, Finland
22		Julia Schalin	F	L	18	2020	Espoo, Uusimaa, Finland
23		Elsa Talvitie	F	L	19	2020
5		Vilma Timonen	D	–	18	2023
21		Aliisa Toivonen	F	L	22	2023
15		Minttu Tuominen	F	R	33	2023	Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland
87		Lisette Täks	F	L	20	2022	Tartu, Estonia
20		Reetta Valkjärvi (C)	D	L	27	2015	Hollola, Päijät-Häme, Finland
8		Tea Villilä (A)	D	L	32	2016	Hyvinkää, Uusimaa, Finland
28		Henni Virtanen	F	L	21	2022	Lohja, Uusimaa, Finland
34		Julia Zielińska	D	L	18	2020	Sanok, Województwo podkarpackie, Poland
25		Linda Österlund	F	L	28	2022

Coaching staff and team personnel

• Head coach: Sami Haapanen
• Assistant coach: Johanna Leskinen
• Goaltending coach: Risto Jaakkola
• Conditioning coach: Viola Kaukonen
• Team managers: Riku Eskelinen & Timo Timonen
• Equipment manager: Marko Ahlroth

• Katri-Helena Luomajoki, 1997–98
• Essi Sievers, 2007–2009
• Emma Terho (née Laaksonen), 2009–2011
• Essi Sievers, 2011–12
• Emma Terho, 2012–2014
• Minttu Tuominen, 2014–2016
• Linda Leppänen (née Välimäki), 2016–17
• Minttu Tuominen, 2017–2020
• Annina Rajahuhta, 2020–21
• Minttu Tuominen, 2021–22
• Emmi Rakkolainen, 2022–23

• Johanna Ikonen, 1998–99
• Jari Kalho, 2000–01
• Hannu Saintula, 2001–02
• Jari Peltonen, 2002–2006
• Sami Haapanen, 2008–2011
• Kai Jansson, 2012–13
• Sami Haapanen, 2013–

• Aurora Borealis Cup (16): 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2019, 2021, 2022
• Runners-up (3): 2010, 2017, 2023
• Third Place (8): 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997, 1998, 2006, 2016

• Silver (3): 2005, 2007–08, 2009–10
• Bronze (3): 2008–09, 2013–14, 2014–15

• Most goals in a season: Karoliina Rantamäki, 39 goals (24 games; 2002–03)
• Most assists in a season: Minttu Tuominen, 50 assists (30 games; 2018–19)
• Most points in a season: Michelle Karvinen, 81 points (22 games; 2008–09)
• Most points in a season, defenceman: Minttu Tuominen, 62 points (30 games; 2018–19)
• Most penalty minutes in a season: Tea Villilä, 76 PIM (16 games; 2008–09)
• Best save percentage in a season, over ten games played: Noora Räty, .954 SVS% (19 games; 2006–07) / Isabella Laiho (née Portnoj), .954 SVS% (19 games; 2013–14)
• Best goals against average in a season, over ten games played: Noora Räty, 1.21 GAA (19 games; 2006–07)

• Most career goals: Karoliina Rantamäki, 355 goals (338 games; 1992–2007)
• Most career assists: Petra Vaarakallio, 351 assists (286 games; 1992–1994, 1995–2006)
• Most career points: Karoliina Rantamäki, 639 points (338 games; 1992–2007)
• Best career points per game, over 30 games played: Michelle Karvinen, 3.667 points per game (39 games; 2007–2009)
• Most career points, defenceman: Minttu Tuominen, 313 points (208 games; 2006–2009, 2013–2016, 2017–2020)
• Most career penalty minutes: Tea Villilä, 353 penalty minutes (169 games; 2008–2010, 2016–2021)

The top-ten point-scorers in franchise history, 1982 through the conclusion of the 2021–22 season.

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game;   = 2022–23 Kiekko-Espoo player

Source(s): Elite Prospects[20]

• Susanne Ceder, 1998–2000
• Minna Dunder, 1993–94
• Moeko Fujimoto, 2014–15
• Nikola Gápová, 2015–2018
• Sheila Gagnon, 2001–02 & 2008–09
• Jin Fengling, 2005–06
• Marianne Mattila, 1996–1998
• Danielle Rozon, 2017–18
• Sun Rui, 2005–06
• Arina Zvezdina, 2011–12