Aapeli Räsänen and Jesper Mattila Sign With Kalevan Pallo

Aapeli Räsänen and Jesper Mattila have signed with Kalevan Pallo (colloquially known as KalPa) of the Finnish professional hockey league Liiga, the team announced Thursday.

Räsänen, who opted to forgo his final year of eligibility for the Eagles, will be returning to Finland for club play for the first time since the 2015-16 season. While Räsänen was called up on a number of occasions for international duty, he played a season with the USHL’s Sioux City Musketeers before spending three seasons at Boston College. Before Sioux City, Räsänen played for Tappara, which plays in Räsänen’s hometown of Tampere, Finland.

Jesper Mattila came to the Eagles with his brother Julius for the 2016-17 season after a stint with Ilves U-20 in the Junior A SM-Liiga. During his time at the Heights, Mattila became crucial on the Eagles’ blue line, notching 40 points in his career. He became a reliable player on the Eagles’ blue line, and led the team in +/- this year with +30.

Räsänen’s early departure, and the departure of both Jesper and Julius Mattila marks the end of a wave of Finnish infusion into the Boston College lineup that’s been a hallmark over the past four seasons. Starting with Julius and Jesper Mattila in the 2016-17, and with Räsänen’s addition for the 2017-18 season, the Finns have made their impact in the lineup known with all three players going on to make their marks on the program.