Following the victory over the Vancouver Canucks, goaltender Antti Niemi and forwards Joel Armia, Artturi Lehkonen and Jesperi Kotkaniemi spent some quality time with a group of players from Tampere, a city in southern Finland.
Among the 20 adults accompanying the kids on the trip was former Habs defenseman, Martti Järventie, who was a fourth-round selection of the Canadiens and sported the CH for one game in October 2001.
According to Järventie, 42, the annual trek across the pond - which includes stops in both Montreal and Toronto to play six exhibition games - is a tradition for teenage players in the Tampereen Ilves (Finnish Elite League) organization.
"This is the 25th year the guys are coming over here," explained Järventie. "They're Bantam-level AA and AAA players. When they turn 14, they know their team is going to make the trip."
For his part, Kotkaniemi thoroughly enjoyed the visit. It was a good opportunity for him to share some words of wisdom he took to heart along his journey to the NHL ranks.
"It's kind of funny that they're so close to my age. I told them that they can be here in a few years," said Kotkaniemi, who cracked the Habs' roster at just 18 years old this past October. "Everything is possible, so just keep dreaming and work hard. I think those are the keys."
