Kärpät make final of hockey play-offs; Jokerit need one more win to join them

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Kärpät of Oulu eased into the finals of this year’s ice hockey play-offs at the expense of Tappara from Tampere.
      The Oulu side, last year’s Finnish champions, defeated Tappara 7-3 on Sunday to rack up their fourth straight semi-final win and condemn the opposition to an early summer holiday.
      This is Kärpät’s fifth appearance in the final in the past six years, and they have won the coveted Canada Trophy in 2004, 2005, and 2007, in addition to a first title in 1981. The side also won the regular season this year.
     
As things stand at present, Kärpät are likely to face the same opposition in the 2008 final that they beat last spring: Helsinki Jokerit.
      Jokerit are 3-1 to the good against Espoo Blues in their best-of-seven contest, and could wrap matters up when the teams meet in Espoo for the fifth match this evening [Monday, 31st March].
      The Helsinki side, who finished in third place behind Kärpät and Espoo in the regular season, certainly had the measure of their local opponents on Sunday, recording a comfortable 4-0 home victory.
      The three earlier matches had all gone into overtime with the away team proving stronger in each case.
     
The final will be played on the same best-of-seven principle, starting on April 5th.
      On the same day, the two losing semi-finalists will meet in a winner-takes-all contest for the bronze medals.
      Regardless of whether it is Espoo or Jokerit who plays Tappara in "the match nobody wants to be in", the Tampere side will have to travel south, as both the other teams finished above them in the regular season.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  And then there were four... (25.3.2008)

Links:
  SM-Liiga, the Finnish Ice Hockey Premier League (Wikipedia)

Helsingin Sanomat