IS: Jori Lehterä opened up about his departure from HIFK – one thing kept bothering him

Last weekend, unexpectedly announcing the end of his playing career, HIFK’s star forward Jori Lehterä has opened up for the first time about the reasons behind his decision.

The skilled center, who will turn 39 in December, stated that disagreements with head coach Olli Jokinen were not behind his decision to retire. It was also not a desire to leave HIFK.

The reason was Lehterä’s long-standing doubt about his motivation to meet the demands of professional hockey.

– I pondered it for a long time, but only now did I find the courage. I thought that it just had to be done now, and not to prolong this any further, Lehterä said in an interview with Ilta-Sanomat.

– But I listened a bit too much to others. I should have just gone with my own head.

Lehterä admits that the communication related to his retirement went wrong.

– The timing was wrong. I handled it poorly. Right down to all the social media updates, the forward states.

Lehterä’s relationship with head coach Jokinen and HIFK is still good.

– We had no issues (with Jokinen). We were teammates back in the day. Olli was even a guest at my wedding. He is a good coach as well. There was no conflict in any direction.

– This also has nothing to do with me having had any conflicts with anyone at HIFK. I enjoyed the whole thing. I probably wouldn’t have been there for a good three years otherwise. It was all professional, Lehterä emphasizes.

Finally, Lehterä stressed that he will now take his time to breathe before making a decision about the continuation of his career. On a mental level, however, he says he has already hung up his skates for good regarding professional hockey.

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League | 26.10.2026 18:43