As of October 2, he has been the operational director of Mestis Taneli Maasalo35, welcomed with joy the groundbreaking reform made at the SM league’s general meeting on Thursday, which will give the Mestis winner a chance for the brightest lights through the promotion qualifiers, if, in addition to success, the SM league’s other license conditions are met.
– During the decision, a smile came to my cheeks. Restoring the qualifiers between the winner of Mestis and the last team in the SM league supports the Finnish player path. On the other hand, in the future, Mestis clubs will have a good opportunity to develop their activities both athletically and financially, says a satisfied Maasalo.
The new Mestis boss admits that the news was personally pleasing to him.
– It certainly helps my own business, when it is strongly related to, among other things, the brand and sales of the series. From the point of view of clubs and partners, this also brings added value when competitiveness returns.
From the spring of 2025, league qualifiers will be held in the SM league between the winner of Mestis and the last place in the SM league.
– As the League emphasized earlier, mere sportsmanship and winning the qualifiers are not enough. The financial requirements are much tougher for the climb. In practice, it means that operations become more professional and the backgrounds (club finances, sales, marketing, ice rink conditions and match events) must be in order.
The financial framework is significant for league promotion
Chairman of HPK Jyrki Louhi told on Friday that, according to his calculations, the lift movement between the two leagues means big financial costs for the clubs.
Louhi thinks that moving up from Mestis currently costs up to 10 million, because the league share also needs to be redeemed. In addition to this, a competitive team and a competitive turnover must be assembled.
The Mestis boss doesn’t dare to say at this stage how many Mestis clubs would have lunches for the SM league, because he has only been working at his job for a week and a half. Maasalo says that the club tours and getting to know the key figures of the clubs are just ahead.
Maasalo says he is still relying on media coverage at this stage.
– I know that Kiekko-Espoo has expressed their interest in applying for a league place for next season and that Jokerit has also announced their promotion plans at some point in time. Kiekko-Vantaa seems to have also announced that it is willing to move up to the League at some point. I can’t comment on the others.
Sixteen teams maximum
A maximum of 16 teams will play in the SM league in the future. According to Maasalo, that is a lot.
– It’s good that a semblance of a maximum ceiling has been set and now the speculation about how many clubs play there ends. Hopefully there will be enough quality players for all 16 teams, and the level differences will remain as small as possible so that competitiveness is maintained.
– Time will tell whether there will be an elevator movement or not. After a few years have passed with this format, then it will become clearer what number of teams would be reasonable, Maasalo reflects.
Is there a risk that there are not enough high-quality players for everyone?
– If you consider that there are currently 15 teams in the League, then the difference between the tail and the tip has been quite large in recent years. The market economy also defines a lot of these things, notes the Mestis boss.
The 10+10 series system between the SM league and Mestis, which was glimpsed somewhere in hockey circles, has been ditched at this point.
In Maasalo’s opinion, it is clear that in terms of the Finnish player path, there must be cooperation between the SM league and Mestis – just like the league clubs and Mestis clubs.
Mesti’s new front man has his own vision of the ideal league system.
– I would like two series as vibrant as possible, which would both support each other. There would be a chance to rise and fall.
Maasalo sees that Mestis should also drop down. However, he does not want to share his position on what would be the ideal number of teams for the SM league and at the same time for Mestis.
– The ideal would be for there to be as many teams as possible in the lower league level that have a chance of promotion. In this case, the series would remain as vibrant as ever, and the qualifiers in the spring would certainly be interesting, Maasalo envisioned.
Mestizo boom
The ice hockey association is celebrating the “Mestis season of all time”. The new arrival of the Jokers also brings visibility to other clubs and money to the coffin guards.
– I hope that we can maintain the current Mestis boom with the clubs throughout the season. Many clubs have set their own, personal audience records. And Mestis has been heard and seen now more than ever. The game itself has also moved on. I believe that after Thursday’s Liiga press conference, the good buzz will continue, Maasalo says.
What will happen to Mestis if Kiekko-Espoo and Jokerit move up to the SM league?
– The return of the qualifiers keeps interest in the series. Great thing for Kiekko-Espo and the Jokers if they go up. It means that by playing, someone else can also rise. Other clubs that want to join the League in the future need to start looking at their own actions in order to win the Mestis and then the qualifiers. The setting is delicious.
The league qualifiers were played last time in 2013. Since then, Sport, KooKoo and most recently Jukurit, who won Mestis in 2015 and received a league license for the 2016–2017 season, have entered the main league through the license procedure. After that, Mestis was in “weak oxygen” for a while.
– Mestis everyday life then became even more challenging, we were in some kind of intermediate state for a while. However, Mestis has now raised its profile. I believe that the pace will only accelerate and the series will start to interest the players more in the future, when the qualifiers return to the puck map.