Read below for information on the eighth-final series between Lulea Hockey and Tappara Tampere. Lulea won 6–2 on aggregate to advance to the quarter-finals.

Game 2

Coach Joakim Faggervall was confident his team would play well on home ice, and they sure did. Down by 1 on aggregate to Tappara, Lulea got a couple of goals in the first period to take the lead, but that's the way the score staye for a long time – Tappara still a goal from tying it. In the last 10 minutes, however, Lulea broke it open with three goals in a 5:36 span to stamp their ticket to the quarter-finals. Jacob Micflikier scored 2 goals, Toni Rajala had 3 assists and Daniel Larsson needed to make only 13 saves for the shutout.  

“During the first period we really played our game. Our defensive game was really impressive. In the second period Tappara took over a bit and we lost some intensity, we get really passive and let them control the game a bit too much. In the third period we’re back up there once again playing our game,” coach Fagervall said afterward. “I think we had a much better game here at home. We created more offensively and we were really good in our own end. Lulea have a clear goal – that’s to win the CHL – hence, advancing is a big deal for us.” 

“Lulea were the better team tonight, they battled harder, skated harder and won the game fair and square. We weren't ready today. We need to prepare better if we want to beat a team as good as Lulea,” was all Tappara coach Jussi Tapola could say.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS | LIVE BLOG & STATS

Game 1

For two periods Lulea held the edge in play and out-shot Tappara 20–3 but trailed 1–0 thanks to great goaltending from Tomi Karhunen. Tappara then came with a push in the third and the teams traded goals 1:21 apart in the 47th and 48th minute, with Jani Lajunen scoring the game-winning goal to put Tappara up 1 goal after their home game in this series. 

“Good vibes about the game. A tough win over a good Swedish team. We have to be happy about this,” said Tappara forward Henrik Haapala, who assisted on the winning goal. “In my opinion we played quite well. We tried to stay on the path we’ve followed this season. The main thing is to enjoy and have fun every night on the ice. Of course winning is always top-notch.”

GAME HIGHLIGHTS | LIVE BLOG & STATS

Preview

Lulea Hockey and Tappara Tampere are two teams that are both capable of going deep into the competition – even winning it – so this could be one of the most competitive match-ups of the Round of 16. They both went at least this far last year, where Tappara fell to Frolunda Gothenburg – the team Lulea ultimately beat in the final. This year, one of these teams will again fall short of a return to the elite eight, and Tappara would like to see the teams reverse fortunes. While Lulea are the defending European champions, they have been rather mediocre this season domestically and have not been unbeatable so far in the CHL. Tappara, meanwhile, have been to the Liiga finals the last two years and are off to a blazing start to their Liiga season, sitting in first place after 16 games.

(3-1-0-2, 11 points, 18:12)

As mentioned, Lulea have looked mediocre for much of this season, qualifying for the CHL Round of 32 as group runners-up, and then nearly squandered a three-goal lead to Farjestad Karlstad before barely getting through. In the Swedish Hockey League they have hovered around the middle of the pack, still with a chance of moving up but also looking over their shoulders to avoid falling out of playoff position. However, they've shown in the past that they tend to come through when the pressure's on, especially in international competition – not only in last year's CHL, where they won it all, but also in the previous European Trophy, which they won in 2012 and finished third in 2011. The team still has several holdovers from last year's European championship club, including goaltender Joel Lassinantti, and has added several other veteran pieces to try to take another run at the prize.  

Jacob

Micflikier

4+3, +5

 

Top Forward & CRAMO Top Scorer: With 4 goals and 3 assists in six games, Jacob Micfliker has been a major factor in Lulea's CHL season so far. Lining up with Jacob Lagace and Bill Sweatt, they make one of the best offensive lines in the CHL so far. A former Linkoping forward who played in the CHL last year, Micflikier's strong play at both ends of the rink has been a welcome addition to the team in its quest to repeat as European champions.

 

Brendan

Mikkelson

2+3, +3

 

Top Defenceman: Losing a top defenceman like Kristian Nakyva is painful for any team. Luckily for Lulea, others have risen in Nakyva's absence. One of those is former NHLer Brendan Mikkelson, who leads the team in scoring among defencemen in both the CHL and SHL. His experience has been an asset to Lulea so far, and he helped get the team going offensively against Farjestad, scoring the opening goal of Game 1 in Karlstad. 

 

Joel

Lassinantti

91.30 %

 

Top Goaltender: This one is a real no-brainer. Joel Lassinantti is the best goalie in the Lulea Hockey organization. Last season he was among the very best in the SHL, and all of Europe got to see that when he helped backstop his team over some very strong opponents. Despite this, there are some who say that Lassinannti still has another level to his game that he hasen't shown us yet. It will probably take top-flight netminding for Lulea to get past one of Finland's top teams.

 

Click here for team statistics.

Closer look: Tappara Tampere

(5-0-1-0, 16 points, 20:7)

Tappara have only one blemish on their CHL record so far, that being an overtime defeat on home ice to Djurgarden Stockholm. Otherwise they've been perfect, and have out-scored their opponents 20–7 overall. They've got solid goaltending from both Tomi Karhunen and Mika Nornonen – each recording a shutout so far – and been strong from there out. That was evident in the Round of 32, where they allowed only one goal in two games to Vitkovice Ostrava. That success has carried into the domestic Liiga, where they have been equally dominant, out-scoring opponents 52–33 through 16 games. This team is no flash in the pan, as they've gone to the Liiga finals each of the past two years, narrowly falling to powerhouse Karpat Oulu each time. This is a strong team and one that can announce that to all of Europe by dethroning the defending champions.  

Jan-Mikael

Jarvinen

2+5, +1

 

Top Forward & CRAMO Top Scorer: A playmaking forward who can play either centre or wing, Jan Mikael Jarvinen is always trouble in the attacking zone with his passing abilities. Last season he had 6 assists for Tappara in the CHL and this season has 5 so far after six games. He gets a lot of his points on the power play, and a couple of his favourite targets at full strength are linemates Henrik Haapala and Janni Jalunen. Kristian Kuusela is another player Lulea will have to watch out for. Even though he hasn't scored a goal yet in the CHL, he leads Tappara in Liiga assists and points.

Teemu

Aalto

1+4, +5

 

Top Defenceman: Teemu Aalto has been, once again, Tappara's leading d-man. Aalto has a huge slap shot and he uses is biggest asset a lot, especially on the power play. But Aalto isn't just a shooter – he also has great hockey sense. He can use his experience when it comes to protecting his own end of the ice. Aalto isn't the fastest skater on the ice, but he is very careful with his stick and moves, so he makes very few mistakes. He is a trustworthy player and he can be put to the ice in any situation from shorthanded to 3-on-3 play, as he is able to adapt his game every game, every time.

 

Tomi

Karhunen

95.06 %

 

Top Goaltender: Tomi Karhunen came to Tappara for this season from last year's Finnish champions Karpat. He had a lot of pressure on his shoulders, because Tappara's last goalie Juha Metsola had been excellent for few years in a row. Now Karhunen has shown his quality to his new team. He has been solid with his work every game that he played in the CHL group stage. Over 95 % save accuracy tells the story – Karhunen is capable to win games for any team he plays for. Even though veteran Mikka Noronen played against Vitkovice – and played very well – Karhunen has been Karhunen's go-to guy so far this year.

Click here for team statistics.