1975–76 SM-liiga season
The 1975–76 SM-liiga season was the inaugural season for the new top level series of ice hockey in Finland, SM-liiga. The season featured 10 teams who played 36 game regular season followed by play offs for top 4 teams. Points were given as follows: 2 from win, 1 point from tie and 0 points from loss
Regular season
Regular season standings
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, T = Ties, L = Losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
| SM-liiga | GP | W | T | L | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TPS | 36 | 25 | 5 | 6 | 55 | 194 | 113 |
| Tappara | 36 | 21 | 6 | 9 | 48 | 189 | 113 |
| Ässät | 36 | 20 | 3 | 13 | 43 | 187 | 140 |
| HIFK | 36 | 19 | 5 | 12 | 43 | 181 | 146 |
| Lukko | 36 | 19 | 3 | 14 | 41 | 175 | 142 |
| Jokerit | 36 | 17 | 2 | 17 | 36 | 169 | 156 |
| Ilves | 36 | 14 | 6 | 16 | 34 | 147 | 160 |
| KooVee | 36 | 14 | 5 | 17 | 33 | 152 | 162 |
| FoPS | 36 | 6 | 4 | 26 | 16 | 126 | 243 |
| Sport | 36 | 5 | 1 | 30 | 11 | 114 | 259 |
Teams written in bold letters advance to playoffs.
Regular season scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Martti Jarkko | Tappara | 35 | 26 | 38 | 64 | 64 |
| Jouni Rinne | Lukko | 36 | 36 | 22 | 58 | 16 |
| Matti Hagman | HIFK | 36 | 24 | 34 | 58 | 39 |
| Seppo Repo | TPS | 35 | 33 | 22 | 55 | 32 |
| Hannu Kapanen | Jokerit | 36 | 29 | 24 | 53 | 30 |
Playoffs
Semi finals
| Home | Score | Away | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| TPS | 2 | HIFK | 1 |
| HIFK | 2 | TPS | 5 |
- TPS Win Best of 3 Series 2-0.
| Home | Score | Away | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tappara | 3OT | Ässät | 2 |
| Ässät | 4 | Tappara | 6 |
- Tappara win best of 3 Series 2-0.
Bronze medal games
| Home | Score | Away | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ässät | 8 | HIFK | 5 |
| HIFK | 6 | Ässät | 8 |
Ässät win best of 3 Series 2-0 and the Bronze Medals for the 1975–76 SM-liiga season.
Finals
The finals took place on 18-19 March.
| Home | Score | Away | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| TPS | 4 | Tappara | 1 |
| Tappara | 1 | TPS | 2 |
TPS win the Best of 3 Series 2-0 and the 1975-76 SM-liiga championship.
Playoffs scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Timo Parkkonen | HIFK | 4 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 4 |
| Rauli Levonen | Ässät | 4 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 14 |
| Erkki Väkiparta | Ässät | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| Seppo Repo | TPS | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 |
| Tapio Koskinen | Ässät | 4 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
Relegation
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, T = Ties, L = Losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
| GP | W | T | L | Pts | GF | GA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FoPS | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 32 | 29 |
| Kiekkoreipas | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 35 | 30 |
| Kärpät | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 23 | 32 |
| Sport | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 26 | 25 |
Replay
Kärpät - Kiekkoreipas 3-4 OT
References
| Preceded by 1974–75 SM-sarja season (last) |
First SM-liiga season 1975–76 |
Succeeded by 1976–77 SM-liiga season |