Pelicans Lahti U20 beat Ilves Tampere U20 3-2 in a club friendly on Thursday. The match took place at 15:30 local time on 21 August 2026. It was one of several warm-up games both sides have scheduled ahead of the new season.
Ilves came into the fixture looking sharp. They had won their last two friendlies, including a 7-4 victory over KalPa U20 and a 5-4 win against Tappara U20. Their previous results showed 4-8 and 2-3 losses to Tappara and Kiekko-Espoo respectively.
Pelicans were less consistent in their preparations. They beat Jokerit U20 5-2 but then lost 3-4 to Jokurit U20. Earlier results included a 1-3 defeat to Kukuko and two losses to Hämeenlinna, 1-2 and 1-4.
And here's the thing — friendlies like this rarely tell the full story. The score doesn't capture everything either team might have tried. Pelicans snatched the win, but with only five minutes between the last two results for each side, form is still fluid.
To be fair, both clubs use these games to test combinations rather than chase results. The table goes out of the window in these games. What matters is seeing how players respond to each other under match conditions.
The result extends Pelicans' momentum slightly after their inconsistent run. Ilves will look to build on their two wins and tighten up defensively. By then, the real test comes when the season starts.