Ilves opens Liiga season with 2–0 road shutout in Rauma

Ilves beat Lukko 2–0 in Rauma in the Liiga season opener, earning a road shutout as defensemen Austin Strand and Tony Sund supplied the goals. The result followed the club's pre-game preview ahead of the match.

Goaltender Mantas Armalis stopped 27 shots for the clean sheet, while Lukko’s Daniel Salonen finished with 26 saves. Strand opened the scoring at 47:18 after a build-up involving Matic Török and Aleks Haatanen. Tony Sund wrapped up the game on the power play at 50:46, finishing off a Luke Henman pass. Ilves relied on structured defending and timely counterattacks to withstand late pressure after Lukko pulled its goalie. Attendance was 3,719.

The win extends Armalis’s early-season run. Including pre-season matches, he now has three shutouts in three appearances. Ilves heads west again on Friday to face Ässät in Pori, and the team's home opener at Nokia Arena is scheduled for September 25 against KooKoo.