Jesper Mattila was touched by the first Leijonat invitation – living a dream week with his twin brother: “The stars are right”

Identical twins Jesper and Julius Mattila play for Leijon in the EHT tournament in Tampere. For Jesper Mattila, who made his debut in the national team, the invitation to Leijon was a very emotional moment.

Defender of KalPa Jesper Mattila, 26, is having an emotional week. Mattila cools off for the first time in Leijon when Finland plays in the EHT tournament in Tampere.

The head coach of the Lions Jukka Jalonen the phone call was an emotional moment for Mattila.

In addition, Jesper’s debut has a special quality, because the Lions’ team also has a twin brother Julius Mattila. Julius has previously played eight matches in Leijon, when he took part in the EHT tournament and the WC camp last spring.

– It’s rare in life to have emotions as big as when Jukka called. A little boy’s dream comes true. It’s great to be able to experience this together with Julius. All the stars aligned this time, Jesper Mattila describes his mood.

How much energy do the first Leijona matches give to the SM league?

– Certainly hugely, above all in terms of mental and self-confidence. My performances in the league games have brought me an invitation to the A national team, so I can confidently return to everyday life in the league, Jesper emphasizes.

Nephew Julius also gets excited when he gets the chance to play in Leijon together with his brother.

– Very cool. It’s now the fourth season that we don’t play on the same team. This is an interesting time for both of us, Julius, who plays as a forward for Luko in the SM league, enthuses.

Playing years together in Boston

Although the last few years have been spent in different places, the duo from Tampere already played for four years in the same Boston University team. Julius recalls that Jesper first made the decision to go beyond the ocean.

– It was clear to Jesper before, I thought more about it myself. Jesper was already going there, while I was still thinking about going or not. We were originally supposed to go to different universities. It was more of a coincidence than a plan that we ended up at the same university, Julius times.

The university years in Boston guaranteed that the brothers have enough future even after their hockey careers. Both completed their final degrees in economics.

Jesper is looking forward to seeing how his speed is enough at the international level.

– Everyone has played in tough leagues for a long time. Thus, from a defender’s point of view, a new challenge for me is how to fight in the corners against good and skilled attackers. I’m excited to go and see how I’ll do, Jesper predicts.

Clear roles in Leijon

Jesper plans to play in Leijon in the same style as he has played in the SM league.

– A classic own game. That’s how I got here, so don’t change that. The goal is to see where we are going in relation to the international top. I don’t try to do anything differently than in my everyday life in Kuopio.

In Leijon, the players’ roles are clear.

– We have clear roles. Right from the first day, it was made clear that some of the players have a superior role and some have an inferior role. I speak for both of us that we will definitely get the underdog role. The roles are very clear to the players, Jesper Mattila praises.

Julius Mattila intends to show that he has earned a place in the national team.

– I’m not going just to survive, but to really bring my own strengths and try to help the team win. This is a small reward for the season so far. I must have done things right when I got here. That brings a positive drive to the end of the season, Julius estimates.

Finland will meet Switzerland, the Czech Republic and Sweden in Tampere.

– The Swiss players have a high tempo and a lot of skill. The Finnish players of the Swedish SHL have said that they don’t really accept late starts there. They are still a step ahead in individual skills than in our domestic league, Julius Mattila compares.