Aurora Borealis Cup

The Aurora Borealis Cup (Finnish: Aurora Borealis -malja) is the trophy awarded by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association to the victorious team of the Naisten Liiga playoffs, the Finnish Champion in women's ice hockey.

Project

Christopher Shapardanov, Canadian Ambassador to Finland, first conceived of the Aurora Borealis Cup in September 2009, after a visit to the Finnish Ice Hockey Museum (Finnish: Suomen Jääkiekkomuseo) in Tampere and conversation with Jyrki Lumme and Kimmo Leinonen, chairman of the Finnish Ice Hockey Museum Association (Finnish: Suomen Jääkiekkomuseoyhdistys ry). The project was motivated my a desire to honor the quality of play in Naisten Liiga and as a symbol of support in the promotion of women's ice hockey.

The project was then commissioned through the fundraising efforts of the Finnish-Canadian community, with significant financial contributions from Osuuspankki. Several Canadian former players, including Sami Jo Small and Darren Boyko, contributed to fundraising efforts and other aspects of the project.

The design and manufacture was executed by Toronto-based Awardco. The completed Aurora Borealis Cup was presented by Ambassador Shapardanov and received by Kalervo Kummola, Chairman of the Finnish Ice Hockey Association, on 21 March 2011. An exact replica of the Aurora Borealis Cup was also given to the Suomen Jääkiekkomuseo, where it's on permanent display in a place of prominence opposite the original Kanada-malja.

Design

The design of the trophy pays homage to the natural and cultural similarities between Finland and Canada. Both Arctic nations are renowned for the ability to observe the Aurora Borealis, also called the Northern Lights, after which the cup is named. Likewise, the choice of materials celebrate the countries' natural affinity. The metal elements of the trophy are Canadian silver, the wood is maple, and a ring of labradorite circles the foot of the cup. The cup itself depicts the Northern Lights over a coniferous forest landscape. Text documenting the donation of the trophy is engraved in four languages on the upper tier of the base to highlight the official bilingualism of each country; the text appears in Finnish and Swedish, the official languages of Finland, and in English and French, the official languages of Canada. The lower tiers of the base feature 60 metal plates, originally intended to be engraved with the names of the champion teams until the plates were filled in 2070.

Championship history

Prior to the introduction of the Aurora Borealis Cup, the Naisten SM-sarja champion received the Sammon -malja.[6] The Sammon -malja was first awarded in 1983 at the conclusion of the inaugural Naisten SM-sarja season to Helsingin Jääkiekkoklubi (HJK) and it was used continuously through the 2009–10 season. The trophy was retired in the spring of 2011 and is now on display at the Suomen Jääkiekkomuseo.

As champions of the 2011 Naisten SM-sarja playoffs, HPK Hämeenlinna were the first team to receive the Aurora Borealis Cup.

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