Women's Hockey
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
Mira Jalosuo (MEER-ah yel-LOW-sue-OH) was named the head coach of St. Cloud State Women’s Hockey, Director of Athletics Holly Schreiner announced on June 27, 2025 and will enter her first season in 2025-26. The former assistant coach for the Huskies became the seventh head coach in program’s 27-year history and the second woman to lead the Huskies after Kerry Brodt Wethington, the program's first head coach from 1998-99 to 2001-02.
A highly decorated member of Finland’s National Team, the two-time Olympian and five-time World Championships Bronze medalist spent the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons as an assistant coach with the Minnesota Frost (formerly PWHL Minnesota), helping the franchise win each of the first two Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) Walter Cups.
Prior to becoming a coach for the Frost, Jalosuo spent a year as an assistant coach for the Huskies under former head coach Brian Idalski, during his first season in 2022-23. She primarily worked with the defenders, while directing the penalty kill and assisting with recruiting efforts.
In her lone season with the Huskies in 2022-23, Jalosuo helped recreate St. Cloud State as one of the best defensive teams in the country. SCSU led the NCAA and set a new program record with 576 blocked shots while holding opponents to 2.59 goals – their second-best mark in program history – and 32.24 shots per game – their best mark since 2015-16. St. Cloud State's goaltenders anchored the rejuvenated defense, recording the program's third-best team save percentage at .920 and second-best goals against average of 2.58. The Huskies posted a program-record six shutouts in 2022-23, punctuating their stingy defensive work.
St. Cloud State’s young defensive corps flourished under Jalosuo’s direction as sophomores Dayle Ross and Grace Wolfe each took monumental steps forward. Ross led the NCAA with a Huskies single-season record 104 blocks, Wolfe landed second in the country with 83 and true freshman Regan Bulger finished fourth nationally with 78 blocks. Wolfe increased her point total by 15 while Ross went from three points as a freshman to 15 as a sophomore, each seeing increased roles and productivity in the offensive zone. Senior assistant captain Taytum Geier established new career-highs in assists, points, plus-minus and blocks in her lone season under Jalosuo.
Jalosuo had been a steady presence on Finland’s blue line until her retirement in 2018, skating for 12 years as a member of the Senior National Team. She appeared in the 2014 and 2018 Olympic Games – earning bronze at Pyeongchang in 2018 – and added five bronze medals at the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Women’s World Championships (2008-09, 2011, 2015, 2017). The defender played in 193 games for Finland, scoring 11 goals and adding 22 assists for 33 points as an anchor on the blue line.
From 2019 to 2022, Jalosuo spent three seasons leading Stillwater Area High School girl’s hockey as the program’s head coach. Under her direction, the Ponies went 52-19-4 (.693) and boasted a strong penalty kill. Stillwater killed 89.3% of their chances on the PK, including 90 of 98 (91.8%) kills in 2019-20.
Prior to her time at Stillwater, Jalosuo had served as an assistant coach for Hamline University and Wayzata High School since 2015. She also coached with the Stillwater Area Hockey Association, leading the U12A team to a 42-6-2 record in 2018-19.
Jalosuo played professionally following her collegiate career from 2013-18, spending two seasons with SKIF Nizhny Novgorod in the Russian Women’s Hockey League and earning the Russian Championship in 2014. She then spent time with Luleå HF in the SDHL before joining the Minnesota Whitecaps of the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) in 2016-17 and 2017-18. Jalosuo also skated with Oulun Kärpät in the Naisten Liiga, the team she played with as a teenager prior to her time with the Gophers.
The Lieksa, Finland native played for the Minnesota Gophers from 2009-10 to 2012-13. She appeared in 153 career games for the Maroon and Gold, recording 57 career points with 19 goals and 38 assists. A Third Team All-WCHA honoree as a senior, Jalosuo was part of back-to-back national championship teams as a junior and senior. She was a three-time WCHA All-Academic honoree as well.
Raised in eastern Finland, Jalosuo began playing in the premier Finnish women's league with Oulun Kärpät at age 15 and was an All-Star in 2007 and 2008. She served as the team's captain in 2008-09 while still attending high school.
