Tappara won for the tenth time in a row in the SaiPa hockey SM league and withstood the numerous superiority of the Kisapuisto hosts in the Finnish hockey “El Clasico”.
The star center of Tappara Jori Lehterä launched the term “El Clasico”, familiar from Spanish football, to ice hockey 15 years ago. In football, it means the meeting of the giant clubs Real Madrid and FC Barcelona.
Lehterä leaked in 2007 that hockey’s “El Clasico” is the November meeting between SaiPa and Tappara in Kisapuisto. Such was seen on Tuesday evening in Lappeenranta.
Twisted puck fights on dark November weeknights, when there were usually no actual fireworks between the teams in Kisapuisto. They were, as it were, complete opposites to the original “El Clasico”.
Throwing the arbor has remained in life since then.
– I think that’s a funny thing. 15 years ago, we beat SaiPa 4–2 in the Tuesday game. The year must have been 2007 and the day was October 2. I scored a goal in the match when (Tendon) Grönvall threw me the puck at the back post and I was able to put it in, recalled Lehterä.
Lehterä said that he was warned in advance that it might be a bit dark in Eastern Finland then.
– I myself have been looking for more enthusiasm and challenge from that thing, I like coming to these games. On the bus trip to Lappeenranta, I watched that league game on YouTube, I felt it and woke myself up a bit, revealed Lehterä.
Regarding the genuine “El Clasico” teams, Lehterä admits that he is a Barcelona fan and that he once liked the La Liga giant’s cheerful, attacking style of play.
Yöttöhirmu Lehterä’s great start to the winning goal
Tappara beat SaiPa 2–1 in the most recent “El Clasico” match in Tuesday’s ice hockey SM league round. The victory was already the tenth in a row for kirvesrinni in mutual struggles.
In the first set, Lehterä sent a magical pass to the back post with superiority Veli-Matti Savinainenwho this time scored the game-winning shot into a virtually empty goal from the back post.
– We played two sets well, and there was nothing to worry about. Then there was a small error (Maksim Matushkin losing the puck as the bottom player with Tappara’s superiority), and there was a clatter in his own. On top of that, there was a lot of ice and we had to fight hard. It’s good that it was taken care of, but this was made into a suspense drama through the ice, Lehterä described.
In the losing match, SaiPa wasted, among other things, their five-minute superiority in the second set and their two-man special situation that lasted less than a minute in the final set. SaiPa was sentenced to a total of 8 minutes of suspension, Tappara 33 minutes. Walter Merelä got a 5+20-minute suspension after punching a SaiPa defender near the wing Hugo Rikkilää from the back.
Hanging in corner twists annoys Lehterä
Tappara had lost the previous two matches by 1-2 to TPS and Jukurei, but this time they won the points for themselves with the same number of goals. In the SM league, you rarely see goal celebrations anymore – at least not in the matches of Tappara.
In Lehterä’s opinion, the SM league is now the last tactical series, where you defend smartly and take risks with even fives. However, it is a bit special for a puck player that you can hang around so much in the current League.
– There have been new rule reforms here, and you can hang around there (in the trough). There, you can be put in pretty “handcuffs” in corners, for example. It’s surprisingly hard to do miracles in a five-on-five game. Then there are a lot of good basic defenders in the league who know how to play with the powers given by the rules, Lehterä justifies the puck matches with fewer goals than ever before.
Lehterä, who ranks third in the points exchange, wears Tappara’s golden helmet after totaling 1+16=17 points in 18 matches. No less than ten of his assist markings have come with superiority.
Tappara, which is fourth in the series, and other league teams as well, are starting to have their third regular season behind them.
– An okay start from the team and myself, but there is room for improvement. Slowly towards spring. Let’s try to build the team piece by piece. It’s suddenly difficult to get things working, points out Lehterä.
National team command ahead
From Tappara, the Lions were selected for the EHT home tournament to be played in Turku on the 10th-13th. November four players; defenders Brother Matti Vittasmäki and Mikael Seppälä and forwards Lehterä and Merelä.
It is possible that the head coach Jukka Jalonen has thought of Lehterä-Merelä as a pair of Leijoni’s radars in his preliminary characterizations.
– I can’t say anything about that, we haven’t talked about it.
Lehterä returns to the Leijona shirt after playing three matches in the national team last season 2019–2020. No less than 15 players from the league reached Jalonen’s papers (you will switch to another service). There are nine world champions from last spring in the team.
– It’s a good feeling to go there and watch the international level at the same time, but I haven’t really thought about it yet when there are still a couple of league games ahead, says 34-year-old Lehterä.
Tappara will face Sport on Friday in Vaasa and league leader Luko on Saturday in Rauma.
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