First Finns enjoy their return visit
Anssi Melametsa, Veli-Pekka Kinnunen in Peterborough for homecoming
Anssi Melametsa showed his wife the Albany Court home where he billeted 40 years ago, then retraced the route he took to the Memorial Centre daily for Peterborough Petes practice.
The 40th anniversary celebration of the Petes’ 1979 Memorial Cup championship team was more than a reunion – it was a homecoming. It marked the inaugural Petes Homecoming Weekend where alumni from all eras gathered for festivities including a reception Friday night at the Peterborough and District Sports Hall of Fame and Saturday when the Petes hosted the Windsor Spitfires.
Nobody travelled further than the first Europeans to play for the Petes in Melametsa and fellow Finnish native Veli-Pekka Kinnunen. Gary Green, coach/GM of the 1979 team, flew to Finland to sign the players recommended to him by friend and future NHL executive David Conte.
“It’s really nice to see all these guys again and the arena and all the people who work for the Petes,” said Melametsa, who hadn’t been back since 1979. “I can show my wife where I was when I was 17. We went first to show her the house I stayed at and then I knew by heart where to find the rink.”
There was no internet in those days so very little was known about where they were going.
“We were so excited to come here and play. The guys took us in really well,” said Melametsa. “We really enjoyed it.”
Stuart Smith, a member of all three Petes teams to reach the Memorial Cup final between 1978-80, said Green deserves credit for breaking ground by recruiting Europeans.
“Greener saw that hockey was changing,” said Smith. “It was a bold move but I think it worked. He made a lot of smart moves.”
Smith said the players didn’t question the move.
“We had just come off making it to the final the year before and as young players you believe in what the coach is telling you. Everybody was all for it. It raised the skill level of everybody else. In hindsight, it shows you hockey is a global game.”
Melametsa had nine goals and 30 points in 64 games that season. Kinnunen had 13 goals and 31 points in 62 games. Both returned to Finland the following season and had long pro careers with Jokerit Helsinki.
Green said he believes Brian Kilrea recruited the first European to the then-Ontario Hockey Association as he thinks a Norwegian played for the Ottawa
67’s. It certainly wasn’t common, he said.
Green said he also tried to sign Jari Kurri while in Finland but his club wouldn’t consent to it.
“Nobody knew his name at the time,” said Green. “We ended up with two guys that we felt could assist us. I took Dave’s word for it. I went over and negotiated their releases but I could only get them for one year. That was the problem at that point in time. You could only get their releases for a year at a time.”
Green and his wife Sharon and the Petes’ secretary, Karen Brown, picked them up at the Toronto airport.
“They couldn’t say anything except milk and one other word or so. Very limited English,” said Green. “They were two young 17-year-old kids who came to a strange city and integrated into our team.”
Green said his players were impressed immediately by their skill. “They watched them skate and pass and went, ‘Holy crap’ because their skill level was very high. They had to adjust to a smaller ice surface and the aggressiveness of our game but they added a great deal to our overall skill development as well as our team-building because they were both really good guys and were very fondly thought of by our players.”