It had been a very long time—actually, too long—since I last attended an ice hockey game. This was a great opportunity to see two rival teams clash. Kiekko-Espoo was recently promoted from the Mestis series, the second-highest ice hockey league in Finland, to the top-tier Liiga. Kiekko-Espoo is based in Espoo, adjacent to Finland’s capital, Helsinki, where their rivals HIFK (founded in 1897) are from.

History of Kiekko-Espoo’s name:

• 1984–1998: Kiekko-Espoo
• 1998–2016: Espoo Blues
• 2018–present: Kiekko-Espoo

Kiekko-Espoo (Metro) Areena and Location

The security check and entry into the arena took only about 5-10 minutes. It is very easy to get to Metro Areena, the home arena for Kiekko-Espoo, located in the southern part or Espoo. You can take the metro from Helsinki Central Railway Station to Urheilupuisto metro station, which takes about 15 minutes. Metro Areena holds up to 6,982 people, and that was also the attendance for this game. The atmosphere was incredible from the start. The arena was packed with enthusiastic fans, and there were practically no quiet periods during the game, except for the intervals.

I had a seat in section 406, which is a good section. You can see the ice clearly, but if you do not sit in the first two rows, you might miss some action on the side of the ice rink where you are sitting. The section had fans from both teams, which was nice. On the other side, there were a lot more HIFK fans, while the home team fans were in the lower sections near the corner of the ice rink. The jumbotron looked very modern and clear, so you could even follow the game from it.

The game also aired live, so there were some commercial breaks now and then. Since it was a warm day (unusually warm for September in Finland), the ice rink experienced some foggy situations during the game, which received some negative press. I did not notice any problems from where I was sitting, so I think it was mainly an issue for people watching the game at home.

The Game

The game started with several speeches, including one from the mayor of Espoo, Jukka Mäkelä, who also dropped the first puck. After the first goal in the first period, which HIFK managed to squeeze in behind the 18-year-old goalie, the fans went crazy with excitement. After the first period, you did not have to simply wait for the second period to begin.

Kiekko-Espoo did a good job creating an interval show where their junior players (born in 2008 and 2010) clashed on the ice. It was fun to watch as the kids playing were falling down or bumping into each other. One of the teams even managed to score a goal, which was nice.

The second period was also full of excitement, with the whole arena going crazy when the home team scored their first goal. The home team played well but was unlucky in conceding a goal before leveling it to 2-2. The third period was a thriller with the game tied. HIFK managed to score to the disappointment of the home team fans, which meant that the game would not go into overtime, where you play 3 against 3 for 5 minutes, and if that doesn’t decide the winner, a penalty shoot-out follows.

The final result of the game that turned out to be a real thriller was 2–3 (0–1, 2–1, 0–1). It was a tight struggle, but in the end, an enjoyable evening with lots of excitement!