It was a long and twisty road for Finnish side Tappara Tampere this season but they finally got their hands on the elusive European Trophy and first title of Champions of Europe!
The eight-time participants of Europe's elite club ice hockey competition slayed some big teams along the way, scored some important goals and won all-or-nothing games, but their path wasn't always an easy one - here's a look back at the making of a new CHL Champion!
The 18-time Finnish champions are no one-season wonder. For starters, they've qualified for each and every CHL season since the competition's inaugural season of 2014/15, which is concrete proof of their table-topping performances in Finland's Liiga year in, year out.
The Finnish powerhouse team have won three Liiga titles in the last seven seasons, not finishing beneath fourth position in the regular season in the process. But in the CHL they've often seen their season end prematurely - not anymore.
Tappara's journey in 2022/23 started with a strong showing in the Group Stage where they faced Bavarian giants Red Bull Munich, Swiss newcomers Rapperswil-Jona Lakers and internationally experienced Slovakian side Slovan Bratislava in Group C.
The Finnish club's four September games saw them take 3/4 wins, the sole loss coming in OT against Rapperswil on Game Day 4, but it would be the final two games of the first phase of the competition against 2019 Finalists Munich that would properly test how prepared they were.
With top spot in the group on the line, it was destined to be a proper battle between these two and it did not disappoint. After a close 4-3 victory after a shootout in Munich, a 4-0 home-ice win on Game Day 6 sealed Tappara top spot in the Group C standings.
Up next was another serious challenger - Swiss mega club HC Davos.
A one-goal First Game in which both teams were on par with each other proved just how close this series was going to be, but in large part thanks to spectacular play from Christian Heljanko, who was also named in the Team of the Group Stage a few weeks earlier, it was Tappara who would head into the Return Game with the advantage.
Another agonisingly close 2-2 Return Game, in which the Finns scored their two goals only 24 seconds apart in the final frame, was enough for Tappara to move on to the Quarter-Finals for only the second time in their eight-season history.
"The entire series was tight - both teams were really going for it. We are glad to be moving on!"Tappara's Maksim Matushkin
But their journey towards the CHL Final had only properly begun, with a string of even tougher opponents waiting for Tappara in the following rounds - tune in later this week for the second part of Tappara Tampere - Making of CHL Champions!