News Article: First Finns

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Sep 5, 2013
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When they first arrived in Canada, Heikki Riihiranta and Veli-Pekka Ketola had a lot on their minds.

The Finnish hockey stars had no idea what to expect in terms of their new surroundings in the World Hockey Association of the mid-1970s.

They were heading to a new country, a new league with a nasty reputation and a Winnipeg Jets organization that was loaded with many of their most fierce international rivals.

“We were thinking about how we’d get along with the Swedes, because we hated them,†Riihiranta said Thursday.

More here

http://www.winnipegsun.com/2016/10/20/jets-first-finns-paved-way-for-likes-of-selanne-laine
 

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"I can make you cry in this room"
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With all the Finnish posters around these days, I'd love to hear thoughts from abroad on these two players. I recall absolutely loving these guys when they came over (I loved the Swedes also) I loved the way they played hockey and I loved the way their names sounded as a young lad. Finnish roots run deep in Winnipeg
 

Lempo

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With all the Finnish posters around these days, I'd love to hear thoughts from abroad on these two players. I recall absolutely loving these guys when they came over (I loved the Swedes also) I loved the way they played hockey and I loved the way their names sounded as a young lad. Finnish roots run deep in Winnipeg

Ketola's jersey is hanging from the rafters in the local barn. During the years there were an amount of ill will between him and the Ässät organisation from this and that and he swore of never stepping inside Isomäki again, but when Ässät took the Championship in 2013 the most crowning moment of it all was that he was there to hand the Canada Trophy to the captain of the team 35 years after he himself was lifting it up there.

Laine may well be the only person in the world who can drive around in a moped car without pissing everyone off, but never has a Finnish man seen eating his word been so cheered as Big Black Ketola was that night.

Quite an okay Jets game they picked to attend.:laugh:
 

TheDeuce

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Feb 22, 2009
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A 'moped car'? Is that the Finnish idiom for a moped in the typical sense of the word?



m.
 

Lempo

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A 'moped car'? Is that the Finnish idiom for a moped in the typical sense of the word?



m.

They're tiny little carlets that in the face of law are mopeds and like moped you get to drive one at the age of fifteen, but on the road they take the room of a real car and are just not quite so slow that they can be a female dog to pass on a curly road. They also are plastic deathtraps and more expensive than real cars and everyone pays for their pitiful existence in their car insurances and hate them.

 

Andy6

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Jun 3, 2011
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When they first arrived in Canada, Heikki Riihiranta and Veli-Pekka Ketola had a lot on their minds.

The Finnish hockey stars had no idea what to expect in terms of their new surroundings in the World Hockey Association of the mid-1970s.

They were heading to a new country, a new league with a nasty reputation and a Winnipeg Jets organization that was loaded with many of their most fierce international rivals.

“We were thinking about how we’d get along with the Swedes, because we hated them,” Riihiranta said Thursday.

More here

http://www.winnipegsun.com/2016/10/20/jets-first-finns-paved-way-for-likes-of-selanne-laine

They were great and Hexi (less talented as a player, perhaps) was a really funny guy. I remember Veli lived in a little apartment on Kenaston that was right above my uncle's ground-floor suite, but I never managed to see him. I forget the name of the complex; it's just south of 'The Ponds', which is newer. It was a more modest life for the Jets then, unless you were Bobby himself.
 

Brominator

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Sep 12, 2009
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He looks like Nygard with those locks. Surprised he cuts that quaff, if I could sport that mane, I would never go within 5miles of a barber shop.

He said in an interview that he cuts it at the beginning of the season and then let's it grow all year.

Yup, now we're getting into analyzing Laine's grooming habits.
 

Lempo

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"I said, laugh goddamn" - this is how the Finnish ice hockey legends learned English in Canada

Jets Finnish legends reminisced wild playing years in Winnipeg.


etusuomalaislegendat2210SP_503_nh.jpg

Veli-Pekka Ketola and Hexi Riihiranta return to Winnipeg, to memories.


Jets invited Veli-Pekka Ketola, Heikki Riihiranta and Markus Mattsson to Winnipeg for the events and celebrations of the ending week.

Ketola and Riihiranta played in Jets in WHA in 1974-77 and won the WHA championship Avco Trophy in 1976. Mattsson played in WHA in Jets 1977-79 and won the Avco Trophy 1979.

- It's been 40 years. This city hasn't changed a lot since then. I've visited here after the gaming years three times, and now I'm here taking care of Vellu, Hexi Riihiranta said.

- You don't leave buddy behind, said Vellu, who is in Winnipeg for the third time after his career.

Jets are paying the Finns four days accommodation and travel money.

- It's great that the club always invites to such events. The Finnish clubs should take lessons from such gatherings, Vellu said.

- Just an awesome thing this journey, said Hexi who came to Winnipeg in Tuesday for a week.

"Sauna evening"

Ketola and Riihiranta would have one million colorful stories to tell of the years in Winnipeg. Not all may withstand the light of day.

- The legends live on, Vellu grinned.

- When we played here, we had a sauna in connection with the locker room. Our superstar Bobby Hull didn't care for sauna. Once we came to sauna with Vellu and we put some sausage on the stove. Other players were amazed, Hexi recalled.

- It was the Finnish sauna evening on Fridays, Vellu said.

Language barrier

Winnipegian Lawyer Don Baizley was many Finnish player's agent, so also of Ketola and Riihiranta.

- Here Don's long and magnificent career as the Swedish and Finnish players' agent began. After all, he later on had other players, but with us he started. At first I did not trust Don at all, because he was left-handed and always turned his contract paper the wrong way around when signing it, Vellu told reporters.

- With us, he came to know the Finns' poor English language skills, Hexi said.

- Don started with the two worst, Vellu confirmed.

- During the first year we learned with Vellu to laugh in English. We went to see stand-up comedy, even though we did not understand anything. When the others started laughing, I hit Vellu in the knee and said that laugh goddamn, Riihiranta said.

Ketola and Riihiranta were the pioneers who paved the way for future Finnish professional players.

- There were no prepared ski tracks to ski on, Vellu told reporters.

Opponents - and sometimes your teammates - treated Europeans quite badly. Had a lot of fights.

- Even the buddies would give deliberately bad passes half a meter behind, so that the opponent could drive you cold, Hexi recalled.

- In the rink you heard all sorts of names. I was often called Veli by our own, but the opponents called me Chicken ****. We came here to eat their bread, so that's why we were hated, Vellu recalled.

Joints repaired

1970 players leisure facilities were a bit more moist than it is today.

- Vellu forced me to drink, Hexi grinning.

Riihiranta was interested in how long bars are now open in Winnipeg.

- In our time, the places were open as long as we managed to press, Hexi said.

- A milking cow should be killed. We were paying customers. We spilled more drinks to the floor than the others drank, laughed Ketola.

Ketola and Riihiranta do not play on Saturday in the Jets and Edmonton Oilers Alumni match.

- Here the best team does not always play. They're resting us, Ketola said with a twinkle in his eye.


http://www.iltalehti.fi/nhl/2016102222499190_nh.shtml
 
Last edited:

FinJetster

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Mar 1, 2015
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Ketola used to be my mothers favorite player. He also happens to be a Porin Ässät legend so he has ties to both our Finnish players (Armia is from Pori and Ketola was part of the coaching staff at the juniors last year and won the championship with Laine).
 

Howard Chuck

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"I said, laugh goddamn" - this is how the Finnish ice hockey legends learned English in Canada

Jets Finnish legends reminisced wild playing years in Winnipeg.


etusuomalaislegendat2210SP_503_nh.jpg

Veli-Pekka Ketola and Hexi Riihiranta return to Winnipeg, to memories.


Jets invited Veli-Pekka Ketola, Heikki Riihiranta and Markus Mattsson to Winnipeg for the events and celebrations of the ending week.

Ketola and Riihiranta played in Jets in WHA in 1974-77 and won the WHA championship Avco Trophy in 1976. Mattsson played in WHA in Jets 1977-79 and won the Avco Trophy 1979.

- It's been 40 years. This city hasn't changed a lot since then. I've visited here after the gaming years three times, and now I'm here taking care of Vellu, Hexi Riihiranta said.

- You don't leave buddy behind, said Vellu, who is in Winnipeg for the third time after his career.

Jets are paying the Finns four days accommodation and travel money.

- It's great that the club always invites to such events. The Finnish clubs should take lessons from such gatherings, Vellu said.

- Just an awesome thing this journey, said Hexi who came to Winnipeg in Tuesday for a week.

"Sauna evening"

Ketola and Riihimäki would have one million colorful stories to tell of the years in Winnipeg. Not all may withstand the light of day.

- The legends live on, Vellu grinned.

- When we played here, we had a sauna in connection with the locker room. Our superstar Bobby Hull didn't care for sauna. Once we came to sauna with Vellu and we put some sausage on the stove. Other players were amazed, Hexi recalled.

- It was the Finnish sauna evening on Fridays, Vellu said.

Language barrier

Winnipegian Lawyer Don Baizley was many Finnish player's agent, so also of Ketola and Riihiranta.

- Here Don's long and magnificent career as the Swedish and Finnish players' agent began. After all, he later on had other players, but with us he started. At first I did not trust Don at all, because he was left-handed and always turned his contract paper the wrong way around when signing it, Vellu told reporters.

- With us, he came to know the Finns' poor English language skills, Hexi said.

- Don started with the two worst, Vellu confirmed.

- During the first year we learned with Vellu to laugh in English. We went to see stand-up comedy, even though we did not understand anything. When the others started laughing, I hit Vellu in the knee and said that laugh goddamn, Riihiranta said.

Ketola and Riihiranta were the pioneers who paved the way for future Finnish professional players.

- There were no prepared ski tracks to ski on, Vellu told reporters.

Opponents - and sometimes your teammates - treated Europeans quite badly. Had a lot of fights.

- Even the buddies would give deliberately bad passes half a meter behind, so that the opponent could drive you cold, Hexi recalled.

- In the rink you heard all sorts of names. I was often called Veli by our own, but the opponents called me Chicken ****. We came here to eat their bread, so that's why we were hated, Vellu recalled.

Joints repaired

1970 players leisure facilities were a bit more moist than it is today.

- Vellu forced me to drink, Hexi grinning.

Riihimäki was interested in how long bars are now open in Winnipeg.

- In our time, the places were open as long as we managed to press, Hexi said.

- A milking cow should be killed. We were paying customers. We spilled more drinks to the floor than the others drank, laughed Ketola.

Ketola and Riihiranta do not play on Saturday in the Jets and Edmonton Oilers Alumni match.

- Here the best team does not always play. They're resting us, Ketola said with a twinkle in his eye.


http://www.iltalehti.fi/nhl/2016102222499190_nh.shtml

Thanks for that. They sound like great guys and great friends still after all these years. I love that the Jets are bringing all of these former players together. We really do have a Finnish connection here in Winnipeg and I'm glad to see it continue.

Laughed at that last line "Here the best team does not always play. They're resting us, Ketola said with a twinkle in his eye." :handclap::laugh:
 

Lempo

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(Ketola was part of the coaching staff at the juniors last year and won the championship with Laine).

- Patrik and Jesse were nearly impossibly to get off the ice after the practice. Those two gentlemen were always the last ones in the rink. They'd finish with a contest the loser of which would have to pick up the pucks. Usually the winner was the one who first shot the puck to the top bar. Didn't take them long, on the first or the second round one or the other would hit the up pipe, Ketola told.

- Would have taken a bit longer from us. We can't get the puck rise that high, the seldom scoring defender Riihiranta laughed.

http://www.iltalehti.fi/nhl/2016102022493637_nh.shtml
 
Last edited:

randomhockeyfan

Registered User
Sep 23, 2016
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They're tiny little carlets that in the face of law are mopeds and like moped you get to drive one at the age of fifteen, but on the road they take the room of a real car and are just not quite so slow that they can be a female dog to pass on a curly road. They also are plastic deathtraps and more expensive than real cars and everyone pays for their pitiful existence in their car insurances and hate them.



Omg, Laine is the coolest mother****er ever. :laugh::laugh: He's rocking that pink shirt and those leather gloves. :laugh:
 

jesui

Registered User
Jan 21, 2011
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everywhere
Ketola is my home town hero.
Great man and was one of the leading players in finnish hockey. I've talk to him couple of times, really a man to look up to. Also Arto Javanainen was from Pori. One of the best goal scorers of finnish hockey history. He died a couple of years ago. He was a kind of a mentor for Joel Armia when Joel was playing for Ässät. Joel was amazing scorer back then with ässät:)

Man i enjoeyd watching him in Liiga :)

 

Aavco Cup

"I can make you cry in this room"
Sep 5, 2013
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Speaking of Finns. Alpo Suhonen was mentioned quite a bit on the radio the last few days. He was Jets assistant coach who apperently got under Sather and Mucklers skin quite a bit in his day. He was quite the trash talker apparently
 

Puckatron 3000

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Feb 4, 2014
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It's before my time, but these Finns sound like great guys with an awesome sense of humor. I'm very pleased the Jets are honoring them and paying their way over. It's nice to hear the Finnish poster's connections with these guys, too.

Great stuff!
 

llwyd

Registered User
Feb 22, 2006
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My big sister was a great Winnipeg fan back in the 70's - must have been really rare those days (and for a girl too). I don't know how she managed it in the pre-internet times, but we would even have Jets paraphernelia in the house. Then later on while studying in Helsinki one of my best friends was a native born Winnipegian who also converted me to the church of the Weakerthans... We still keep in close contact, so despite never been there I'm surprisingly well versed in the local lore and the lay of the city.
 

ChicagoBullsFan

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Jun 6, 2015
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When they first arrived in Canada, Heikki Riihiranta and Veli-Pekka Ketola had a lot on their minds.

The Finnish hockey stars had no idea what to expect in terms of their new surroundings in the World Hockey Association of the mid-1970s.

They were heading to a new country, a new league with a nasty reputation and a Winnipeg Jets organization that was loaded with many of their most fierce international rivals.

“We were thinking about how we’d get along with the Swedes, because we hated them,” Riihiranta said Thursday.

More here

http://www.winnipegsun.com/2016/10/20/jets-first-finns-paved-way-for-likes-of-selanne-laine

Veli-Pekka Ketola was a team-leader in Team Finland U20 WJC gold medal winning team last winter.
When Finnish broadcasting company YLE interviewed him after the gold medal game he was so happy to finally get a world championships medal which was his first in international competition.

Heikki Riihiranta lives in Helsinki and he follows Finnish hockey still.
And he's former team leader in Finland's men's national team.

Riihiranta's number 5 game-jersey is retired in HIFK Helsinki FEL team.
Right now he has difficult times ahead because his former teammate and very good friend Matti Hagman who was first Finnish player in NHL passed away couple weeks ago.
 

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