What is "hifk"

Idrottsföreningen Kamraterna i Helsingfors (abbreviated HIFK) is a sports club from Helsinki, Finland. Formed in 1897 HIFK is the oldest IFK club in Finland. The club has activities in many sports, including football, ice hockey, bandy, floorball, handball, athletics and bowling.

HIFK (a traditional abbreviation of Idrottsföreningen Kamraterna, Helsingfors, English: "Sports Club Comrades, Helsinki") is an ice hockey team based in Helsinki, Finland that plays in the Liiga, the sport's top-level league in Finland. The team plays at Helsinki Ice Hall. It was founded in 1897. Since then, HIFK has won the Finnish National Championship title seven times (1969, 1970, 1974, 1980, 1983, 1998 and 2011). The team won the regular season title in 2016.

The derbies against local rivals Jokerit were often sold out and were among the fiercest in Nordic hockey, but are no longer played following Jokerit's withdrawal from the Liiga following the 2013–14 season to join the Russian-based KHL.

HIFK's general manager starting from May 1, 2008 is Jukka Valtanen. He is the successor of Pentti Matikainen, who coached Team Finland to its first hockey Olympic medal (silver) in Calgary 1988.

HIFK won the Finnish championship title in the season of 2010-2011 against Espoo Blues.

The championship team from 1998 is widely recognized as one of the best ever to have skated together in the top flight of Finnish ice hockey.

Players on the 1998 championship team included a number of future (and former) NHL players – including Tim Thomas ( Boston Bruins, Florida Panthers), Jan Čaloun ( Columbus Blue Jackets), Johan Davidsson ( Anaheim Ducks), Bob Halkidis ( Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings), * Olli Jokinen ( Los Angeles Kings, New York Islanders, Florida Panthers, Phoenix Coyotes, Calgary Flames, Winnipeg Jets), * Jere Karalahti (Los Angeles Kings), Jarno Kultanen (Boston Bruins), * Brian Rafalski (New Jersey Devils, Detroit Red Wings), Christian Ruuttu (Buffalo Sabres, Chicago Blackhawks), * Jarkko Ruutu ( Vancouver Canucks, Pittsburgh Penguins, Ottawa Senators, Anaheim Ducks), Kimmo Timonen ( Nashville Predators, Philadelphia Flyers, Chicago Blackhawks) and Marko Tuomainen (Los Angeles Kings).