Mestis is expanding.
At the end of last season, Imatran Ketterä was able to lift this trophy into the air. JAAKKO STENROOS / AOP
The Latvian club HK Zemgale will play in Mestis next season, the series informs.
HK Zemgale is the reigning champion of Latvia. Mestis also says that they are having discussions with other foreign clubs about possibly joining the series in the coming seasons.
– The most entertaining game in Finland is played in Mesti. It is very great to have HK Zemgale join Mesti to bring even more entertainment, internationality and attention to the whole series, Mesti’s operational director Olli Aro said in the announcement of the series.
HK Zemgale was founded in 2002. It has played in the Latvian premier league for 17 seasons. The club plays its home matches 43 kilometers from Riga, the capital of Latvia. Zemgale’s home hall can hold 1,500 spectators.
Mestis says that its goal is to build the series into Finland’s second professional ice hockey series. The goal is that the series would be able to offer clubs strong and stable commercial operating conditions.
According to Mestis, the desire and decision to expand the series outside the borders of Finland came from the Mestis clubs.
The Mestis season starts on September 22. In the meeting between Imatran Ketterä and Kiekko-Espoo.
Zemgale will play his first match against Heinola’s Peliitto on September 30.
The Latvian club will participate in the playoffs, if the league ranking requires it. The team plays possible playoff games in Finland. Zemgale will not participate in Mesti’s qualifiers.