The final press conference ahead of the Champions Hockey League Final tomorrow took place today in Luleå's Coop Norrbotten Arena, the venue of the CHL Final.
Tappara Tampere Head Coach Jussi Tapola, team captain Otto Rauhala, Luleå Hockey Head Coach Thomas Berglund and team captain Erik Gustafsson were all present at the event and gave us their thoughts ahead of the biggest game of the season.
First to speak was Tappara Head Coach Jussi Tapola who said: "The team and everyone is ready!"
"We've been struggling with our roster a bit, but now I think we are ready. Yesterday's game was a tough one," added the coach, mentioning his side's win over Kärpät Oulu in Liiga last night.
"The team is hungry"Otto Rauhala, Tappara Tampere
For Finnish side Tappara, this is their second CHL Final in a row. Last year they lost to Swedish side Rögle Ängelholm and missed out on their chance to lift the European Trophy as European Club Champions. What do they need to change for this year?
"Hard work is the key to our success," thinks Tapola, "we have strong leadership, but our work ethic will be key."
Their opponents for this season, Luleå Hockey, enter the Final unbeaten. How will they face that?
"We want to be the first team to beat them this season!" joked Tapola, "we have to work and skate hard to beat them."
Next to speak was team captain Otto Rauhala who is "really excited" about the Final, "we've been in this situation before so we know what is coming - the team is hungry."
What will they focus on for the game?
"Like Jusi said, hard work is our thing," said Rauhala, "we want to go out and enjoy the game because you never know when another final like this comes up."
What will they expect from Luleå?
"It's going to be a fast game, lots of battles," thinks the captain who is unfortunately ruled out due to injury.
Luleå Hockey Head Coach Thomas Berglund was third in line to take the microphone and had to face questions regarding his side's last SHL game prior to the CHL Final.
"We lost yesterday so we are not satisfied, but we are looking forward to tomorrow," he said.
What does the experienced head coach expect from his Finnish opponents?
"Tappara are a really good team tactically, so we need to bring real effort and play the game in our way," said Berglund.
How will they prepare for the game?
"It's a Final, everyone has to bring out everything - it is up to us to prepare for tomorrow," he ended.
"It's been a long road to get here"Erik Gustafsson, Luleå Hockey
Last to speak was Erik Gustafsson, Luleå's team captain.
What does playing in the CHL Final for the first time since 2014/15 mean for the club?
"It means a lot for the team and for the club, it's been a long road to get here," he started, "we've been playing well throughout the whole tournament so we deserve to play at home," he added, mentioning how happy he and the club are that they will be playing the Final in front of their home fans.
What does he expect from Tappara?
"They know what they are doing, they always play high-level games so we are going to have to step up our game!" ended the 34-year-old.
Luleå Hockey and Tappara Tampere will face each other in the ultimate one-game CHL Final in Luleå, Sweden this Saturday, 18 February 2023, at 16:20 CET.