Ilves looked to have overcome a two-game blip with victory over Jokerit last time out, but their problems seem to run deeper as they fell 3-1 at Hameenlinna, who made the perfect response to a loss to SaiPa by making it five wins in their last six, moving up to eighth place.
The match appeared to be panning out differently after the first 40 minutes, as Ilves led thanks to Benjamin Korhonen's powerplay goal, but after Vili Alitalo levelled nine minutes into the third, HPK took control, as Oliver Kopiloff put them ahead before Roope Vesterinen added a third in the final minute.
That result gave Assat the chance to go two points clear of Ilves at the top, and it's the chance the Pori side took, earning a second victory in a row by winning 4-2 at Jokerit who remain four points from safety after successive defeats.
Following a goalless first period, Assat tool control in the second with goals from Simon Pinard, Sakari Kostilainen and Alexander Kim as the hosts could only respond once through Antti Kalapudas. Patrik Virta gave Jokerit hope midway through the third, only for Cameron Hillis to restore the two-goal cushion.
Tappara picked up a Champions League win in midweek but their four-match winning run domestically is over after they lost 2-1 at home to Lukko, as they drop to 11th, while the visitors reach third in the standings, four points off the top, despite inconsistent form.
Oliver Suvanto gave Tappara a first-period lead which could have been greater had Benjamin Rautiainen not missed a penalty, and that proved costly as Alex Beaucage set up Petro Seppala to equalise in the second before turning from provider to scorer, grabbing the winner early in an ill-tempered third period.
Third place was up for grabs for Lukko as JYP fell to a 5-4 defeat after overtime to Karpat. Alexander True scored twice to put JYP 2-0 up, but the visitors came back to lead 3-2 by the end of two. The hosts went back in front early in the third period, but Kasper Soini levelled again for force overtime, where Eetu Koivistoinen grabbed his second of the game to win it for the Oulu side, who sit sixth but are level on 24 points with fourth-placed JYP.
Three successive three-point wins have taken Vaasan Sport into the top 12. Their latest victim was Pelicans - the side they knocked out of play-off places - with a 2-1 victory, a second loss in a row for the Lahti side. Anton Straker and Luke Grainger had Sport 2-0 up inside 14 minutes, and though Anton Kettunen pulled one back with 11 minutes left, the visitors held on for the narrow win.
A second victory in a row also moved TPS Turku above their opponents - their 4-2 win over Kiekko-Espoo saw them climb to eighth and knock KE back to 10th place. Both sides had held the lead before they reached the midpoint level at 2-2, but goals from Jeremi Virtanen and Joel Maatta pulled TPS clear.
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