What league does Tappara U18 play in?

Tappara U18 play in the U18 SM-sarja.

Where is Tappara U18 based?

Tappara U18 is based in Tampere, FIN.

Who is the head coach of Tappara U18?

The head coach of Tappara U18 is Miika Vanhatalo.

Who is the captain of Tappara U18?

The captain of Tappara U18 is Karim Heinikoski.

What are the team colors of Tappara U18?

The team colors of Tappara U18 are Blue + Orange + White.

Tappara U18

U18 SM-sarja

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136 057

2025-2026

2025-2026 Season

Tappara U18 were 11-9-2 in the 2025-26 U18 SM-sarja season with 35 points, 7th in the SM-sarja and 12th overall.

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2025-2026 Tappara U18 Player Stats

All Positions

Tappara U18 — 2025-2026 Skater Stats
#	N	Skater	Regular Season						Postseason
#	N	Skater	GP	G	A	TP	PIM	+/-	GP	G	A	TP	PIM	+/-
U18 SM-sarja
1.		Max Järventie (F)	31	29	30	59	14	-	3	1	2	3	2
2.		Max Melicherik (F)	43	29	26	55	89	-	3	0	2	2	6
3.		Jonatan Seppälä (F)	43	21	26	47	38	-	3	2	0	2	18
4.		Petteri Sakki (F)	41	14	24	38	16	-	3	1	1	2	2
5.		Miko Valtatie (F)	44	12	21	33	22	-	3	0	0	0	0
6.		Daniel Kihlström (F)	41	8	16	24	10	-	3	0	0	0	2
7.		Karim Heinikoski (D)	40	1	15	16	111	-	3	0	0	0	2
8.		Roope Saastamoinen (D)	39	3	12	15	36	-	3	0	0	0	4
9.		Eemil Saari (F)	34	3	11	14	73	-
10.		Elmer Kuisma (F)	34	4	8	12	46	-	3	0	0	0	4
11.		Tomas Koivu (D)	41	4	7	11	36	-	3	0	1	1	4
12.		Valtteri Virta (F)	32	3	8	11	26	-	3	1	0	1	29
13.		Liius Nurmi (F)	11	3	7	10	2	-
14.		Aaron Porkka (F)	42	5	4	9	14	-	1	0	0	0	0
15.		Tomas Kohut (D)	43	3	5	8	73	-	2	0	0	0	0
16.		Aleksi Leinonen (F)	23	3	4	7	6	-	3	1	0	1	0
17.		Felix Huuskonen (F)	19	4	1	5	4	-	1	0	0	0	0
18.		Julius Juhola (F)	38	3	2	5	4	-	3	0	0	0	0
19.		Viljam Kivimäki (F)	23	0	5	5	18	-	1	0	0	0	2
20.		Eemil Mattanen (F)	23	2	2	4	4	-	2	0	0	0	2
21.		Niklas Kaarto (D)	8	0	3	3	8	-	2	0	2	2	34
22.		Maximilian Kuusela (F)	13	2	0	2	2	-	2	0	0	0	0
23.		Ilari Uotila (D)	44	0	2	2	14	-	3	0	0	0	0
24.		Akseli Riihimäki (D)	2	0	1	1	4	-
25.		Manu Mäenpää (F)	3	0	1	1	0	-
26.		Miro Kauranen (D)	16	0	1	1	2	-
27.		Moritz Backman (D)	29	0	1	1	42	-	3	0	0	0	2
28.		Tomas Vertala (D)	5	0	0	0	2	-
29.		Patrik Punkari (D)	14	0	0	0	14	-	1	0	0	0	0

Tappara U18 — 2025-2026 Goalie Stats
#	N	Goalie	Regular Season									Postseason
#	N	Goalie	GP	GAA	SV%	W	L	T	SO	TOI	SVS	GP	GAA	SV%
U18 SM-sarja
1.		Veikko Saikkonen (G)	30	3.50	.901	11	17	-	1	1731:06	923
2.		Elias Virkkunen (G)	7	3.69	.884	3	1	-	0	374:29	175
3.		Joel Ylilauri (G)	10	3.57	.884	5	4	-	2	537:18	245	3	8.81	.818
4.		Aleksi Riihimäki (G)	0	-	-	0	0	-	-	0:00	-
5.		Juuso Kaunisto (G)	0	-	-	0	0	-	-	0:00	-
6.		Rasmus Nikander (G)	0	-	-	0	0	-	-	0:00	-	0

2025-2026 Tappara U18 Staff

Head CoachMiika Vanhatalo
Asst. CoachArttu Kulmala
Asst. CoachJukka-Pekka Leppänen
Asst. CoachMikko Pukka
Goaltending CoachVille Väisänen
Dir. of CoachingKimmo Vähä-Ruohola
Equipment ManagerNiklas Grönroos
Equipment ManagerAri-Pekka Mäki-Kauppila

Team Staff History

2025-2026 Tappara U18 Captains

"C"

Karim Heinikoski

"A"

Team Captaincy History

Stories

Insights and analysis from EP Editorial team

2026-06-18, 14:43

Elite Prospects 2026 Europe 2010-born final top 100 ranking

2025-10-16, 14:18

Europe’s Hidden Gems: 5 2010-Born Prospects You Need to Know

2023-08-24, 13:19

Future Vision: Konsta Helenius is the next great centre prospect from Finland

2020-04-03, 14:00

ALANEN: Examining Kasper Simontaival’s Boom-or-Bust Game and Where That Might Take Him

2019-08-16, 15:30

EP Rinkside Prospect Pool Rankings: No. 3 Ranked Carolina Hurricanes

All Articles

2025-2026 Tappara U18 Demographics

Tappara U18 Facts

Plays in: U18 SM-sarja
Team Colors: Blue + Orange + White
Town: Tampere, FIN Map
Founded: -

2025-2026 Tappara U18 Roster Facts

Nationalities

33 players
2 players

Experience

Tappara U18: 1 064 GP

Affiliated Team(s)

KOOVEE U20 (U20 Mestis)
Tappara (Liiga)
Tappara U16 (U16 SM-sarja)
Tappara U16 Akatemia (U16 Mestis)
Tappara U17
Tappara U18 Akatemia (U18 Suomi-sarja)
Tappara U20 (U20 SM-sarja)
Tappara U20 Akatemia (U20 Suomi-sarja)

Tappara U18 Games

Tappara U18 — 2025-2026 Games
date	home	visiting	score	league
11/15/2026 03:15 PM GMT+2	Kärpät U18	Tappara U18	-	U18 SM-sarja
11/14/2026 01:15 PM GMT+2	KalPa U18	Tappara U18	-	U18 SM-sarja
10/28/2026 07:30 PM GMT+2	Tappara U18	Ässät U18	3 - 5	U18 SM-sarja
10/27/2026 07:00 PM GMT+2	Pelicans U18	Tappara U18	5 - 3	U18 SM-sarja
10/24/2026 05:00 PM GMT+3	Tappara U18	SaiPa U18	3 - 1	U18 SM-sarja

RSS

Latest Transactions

Tappara U18 — Latest Transactions
Date	Status		Player	Team	Source
08/16/2026	Confirmed	leaving	Eino Lisma (D)	Sables	Details
07/27/2025	Confirmed	leaving	Darian Rolsing (D)	Wenatchee Wild	Details
04/11/2025	Confirmed	leaving	Emil Vänninen (D)	Sport U20	Details
05/31/2024	Confirmed	joining	Simon Katolicky (F)	HC Dukla Jihlava U17	Details
11/21/2023	Confirmed	leaving	Tuukka Heiskanen (F)	Langley Rivermen	Details
08/29/2023	Confirmed	leaving	Roope Oksanen (D)	Uplakers	Details
08/29/2023	Confirmed	leaving	Jesse Hietanen (D)	Ilves U20	Details
07/17/2023	Confirmed	leaving	Adam Jecho (F)	Edmonton Oil Kings	Details

Show Complete Transfer Coverage

Tappara U18 History and Standings

Tappara U18 — Season History
season	league	GP	W	L	T	OTW	OTL	GF	GA	PTS	PPG	rank	postseason
2026-2027	U18 SM-sarja	18	7	8	-	1	2	70	66	25	1.39	8	-
2025-2026	U18 SM-sarja	22	11	9	-	0	2	75	75	35	1.59	8	Quarterfinal loss
	U18 SM-sarja	22	6	9	-	4	3	83	91	29	1.32	8	-
2024-2025	U18 SM-sarja	22	11	5	-	2	4	97	70	41	1.86	3	Champion
	U18 SM-sarja	22	13	5	-	3	1	100	59	46	2.09	1	-
2023-2024	U18 SM-sarja	22	9	9	-	3	1	76	67	34	1.55	7	Quarterfinal loss
	U18 SM-sarja	22	13	6	-	1	2	84	61	43	1.95	3	-
2022-2023	U18 SM-sarja	22	11	6	-	3	2	77	63	40	1.82	5	Quarterfinal loss
	U18 SM-sarja	22	11	8	-	1	2	78	64	38	1.73	4	-
2021-2022	U18 SM-sarja	43	24	12	-	4	3	167	119	83	1.93	3	Bronze game win
	U18 SM-sarja	17	11	4	-	1	1	77	42	36	2.12	5	-
2020-2021	U18 SM-sarja	23	6	11	-	4	2	86	94	28	1.22	12	-
	U18 SM-sarja	0	0	0	-	0	0	0	0	0	-	7	Season Cancelled
2019-2020	U18 SM-sarja	16	11	3	-	1	1	72	33	36	2.25	2	Did not make playoffs
	U18 SM-sarja	30	11	15	-	2	2	116	91	39	1.3	11	-
2018-2019	U18 SM-sarja	49	22	17	-	6	4	191	175	82	1.67	6	Quarterfinal loss
	U18 SM-sarja	31	15	9	-	3	4	126	111	55	1.77	6	-
2017-2018	U18 SM-sarja	49	23	18	-	6	2	168	141	83	1.69	5	Final loss
	U18 SM-sarja	31	17	11	-	2	1	111	86	56	1.81	6	-
2016-2017	U18 SM-sarja	48	31	12	-	1	4	181	120	99	2.06	2	Bronze game loss
	U18 SM-sarja	30	20	8	-	1	1	117	79	63	2.1	3	-
2015-2016	U18 SM-sarja	48	23	14	-	17	13	178	136	83	1.73	6	Quarterfinal loss
	U18 SM-sarja	30	16	7	-	2	5	120	86	57	1.9	4	-
2014-2015	U18 SM-sarja	14	11	3	-	0	0	61	31	33	2.36	1	Quarterfinal loss
	U18 SM-sarja	30	8	16	-	1	5	93	125	31	1.03	13	-
2013-2014	U18 SM-sarja	48	23	17	-	3	5	155	139	80	1.67	6	Quarterfinal loss
	U18 SM-sarja	30	19	8	-	1	2	101	72	61	2.03	2	-
2012-2013	U18 SM-sarja	48	20	20	-	2	6	180	177	70	1.46	9	First round loss
	U18 SM-sarja	30	15	12	-	1	2	118	104	49	1.63	9	-
2011-2012	U18 I-div	33	25	7	-	1	0	147	79	77	2.33	2	-

Where Are They Now?

Played in the team during season

Tappara U18 — Where Are They Now
#	player	season	team	league	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM
1.	Jiri Keskinen (F)	2026-2027	VaPS	III-divisioona	6	9	20	29	2
2.	Verneri Maajaakkola (F)	2026-2027	TUTO Hockey U20	U20 Mestis	14	12	16	28	2
3.	Valtteri Peltonen (F)	2026-2027	KOOVEE II	II-divisioona	11	14	13	27	0
4.	Aleksi Keskinen (F)	2026-2027	VaPS	III-divisioona	6	10	17	27	2
5.	Michael Keränen (F)	2026-2027	Tölzer Löwen	Oberliga	15	6	20	26	6
6.	Kristian Tanus (F)	2026-2027	HC Ajoie	NL	19	6	20	26	6
7.	Petr Stloukal (F)	2026-2027	Deggendorfer SC	Oberliga	15	12	13	25	0
8.	Aku Kinnari (F)	2026-2027	KOOVEE II	II-divisioona	11	9	14	23	2
9.	Joel Pelttari (F)	2026-2027	Hiki-Hockey	II-divisioona	10	9	11	20	0
10.	Lassi Peltola (D)	2026-2027	Sables	II-divisioona	9	6	12	18	8

View Complete List

Average Height, Weight, Age Per Season

Tappara U18 — Roster Demographics
Season	Roster	Height	Weight	Age
2026-2027	View Roster	5'10"	163 lbs	16.17
2025-2026	View Roster	6'0"	174 lbs	17.06
2024-2025	View Roster	6'1"	181 lbs	17.20
2023-2024	View Roster	6'0"	181 lbs	17.45
2022-2023	View Roster	6'0"	181 lbs	17.45

View 20 Latest Seasons

Regular Season

Franchise All-Time Points

Tappara U18 — Franchise All-Time Points
#	Player	GP	G	A	TP
1.	Verneri Ahonen (F)	101	37	70	107
2.	Jami Krannila (F)	91	39	57	96
3.	Alex Olkinuora (F)	99	40	53	93
4.	Adam Jecho (F)	80	37	46	83
5.	Miro Markkula (F)	92	37	45	82

Franchise All-Time Goals

Tappara U18 — Franchise All-Time Goals
#	Player	GP	G	A	TP
1.	Sami Venäläinen (F)	64	45	24	69
2.	Tuomas Reijonen (F)	38	41	31	72
3.	Alex Olkinuora (F)	99	40	53	93
4.	Jami Krannila (F)	91	39	57	96
5.	Jere Virolainen (F)	76	39	34	73

Franchise All-Time Assists

Tappara U18 — Franchise All-Time Assists
#	Player	GP	G	A	TP
1.	Verneri Ahonen (F)	101	37	70	107
2.	Jami Krannila (F)	91	39	57	96
3.	Alex Olkinuora (F)	99	40	53	93
4.	Mikko Leppä (D)	86	22	49	71
5.	Juho Kuisma (F)	84	21	47	68

Franchise All-Time Penalty Min.

Tappara U18 — Franchise All-Time Penalty Min.
#	Player	GP	G	TP	PIM
1.	Juha Tomunen (F)	67	27	56	223
2.	Pyry Niemi (F)	39	14	44	156
3.	Joonas Liimatainen (D)	51	17	51	154
4.	Jukka Järvinen (F)	64	21	37	152
5.	Otto Räty (D)	53	21	36	151

Franchise All-Time Games Played

Tappara U18 — Franchise All-Time Games Played
#	Player	GP	G	A	TP
1.	Sever Bilgili (D)	116	3	44	47
2.	Sampo Heine (F)	110	13	19	32
3.	Verneri Ahonen (F)	101	37	70	107
4.	Alex Olkinuora (F)	99	40	53	93
5.	Saku Salminen (D)	96	2	19	21

Franchise All-Time Points Per Game

Tappara U18 — Franchise All-Time Points Per Game
#	Player	GP	G	TP	PPG
1.	Martin Has (D)	2	2	4	2.00
2.	Jere Löytökorpi (D)	1	0	2	2.00
3.	Tuomas Reijonen (F)	38	41	72	1.89
4.	Simon Katolicky (F)	30	24	52	1.73
5.	Anton Levtchi (F)	43	30	72	1.67

Franchise All-Time Points Per Season

Tappara U18 — Franchise All-Time Points Per Season
#	Player	Season	League	GP	G	A	TP	PPG	PIM
1.	Anton Levtchi (F)	2012-2013	U18 SM-sarja	43	30	42	72	1.67	30
2.	Jami Krannila (F)	2017-2018	U18 SM-sarja	46	24	41	65	1.41	52
3.	Rasmus Rasinaho (F)	2016-2017	U18 SM-sarja	47	22	43	65	1.38	2
4.	Max Järventie (F)	2025-2026	U18 SM-sarja	31	29	30	59	1.90	14
5.	Juho Kuisma (F)	2024-2025	U18 SM-sarja	43	18	41	59	1.37	24

Franchise All-Time Goals Per Season

Tappara U18 — Franchise All-Time Goals Per Season
#	Player	Season	League	GP	G	A	TP	PPG	PIM
1.	Vilho Vanhatalo (F)	2024-2025	U18 SM-sarja	41	37	21	58	1.41	38
2.	Anton Levtchi (F)	2012-2013	U18 SM-sarja	43	30	42	72	1.67	30
3.	Max Järventie (F)	2025-2026	U18 SM-sarja	31	29	30	59	1.90	14
4.	Max Melicherik (F)	2025-2026	U18 SM-sarja	43	29	26	55	1.28	89
5.	Miro Markkula (F)	2018-2019	U18 SM-sarja	43	27	29	56	1.30	36

Franchise All-Time Assists Per Season

Tappara U18 — Franchise All-Time Assists Per Season
#	Player	Season	League	GP	G	A	TP	PPG	PIM
1.	Rasmus Rasinaho (F)	2016-2017	U18 SM-sarja	47	22	43	65	1.38	2
2.	Anton Levtchi (F)	2012-2013	U18 SM-sarja	43	30	42	72	1.67	30
3.	Jami Krannila (F)	2017-2018	U18 SM-sarja	46	24	41	65	1.41	52
4.	Juho Kuisma (F)	2024-2025	U18 SM-sarja	43	18	41	59	1.37	24
5.	Verneri Ahonen (F)	2019-2020	U18 SM-sarja	46	17	38	55	1.20	14

Franchise All-Time Penalty Min. Per Season

Tappara U18 — Franchise All-Time Penalty Min. Per Season
#	Player	Season	League	GP	G	A	TP	PPG	PIM
1.	Juha Tomunen (F)	1996-1997	U18 SM-sarja	31	11	22	33	1.06	153
2.	Karim Heinikoski (D)	2025-2026	U18 SM-sarja	40	1	15	16	0.40	111
3.	Jaakko Kallio (D)	1999-2000	U18 SM-sarja	34	8	16	24	0.71	109
4.	Joni Laitila (D)	2009-2010	U18 SM-sarja	25	3	9	12	0.48	104
5.	Antti Kähönen (D)	2002-2003	U18 SM-sarja	25	8	6	14	0.56	103