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I ought to do commercials for Finnish tourism. After securing my apartment in Moscow for the next KHL season, I traveled to Finland and spent a week in Helsinki tending to hockey-related matters. Well, that and having a whole lot of fun. Ah, hockey. What a life!

Trust me, if you have never to been to Helsinki in particular, find a way to get yourself there at some point in your life. The city is amazing.

Helsinki's architecture, history, the food, the sights, the sea and the culture are all wonderful things to experience firsthand. I was also greatly impressed by Hartwall Arena, home of longtime Finnish powerhouse team Jokerit, who will be new to the KHL next season.

One of the biggest highlights of the trip for me was being invited on Teemu Selanne's boat. While in Helsinki, I had the pleasure catching up not only with Teemu himself but also with Est Tikkanen, Jere Lehtinen and Jari Kurri. That's a combined 1,772 regular season goals between the five of us. Hey, place-value fanatics: Not to brag or anything but do you see those two goals represented way over in the ones column? That column would have been a zero if not for the two goals I scored in the NHL (haha).

At any rate, I thought I'd share with my readers some of the sights of my just-completed trip. Näkemiin ja kiitos, Suomi!




Hanging out with Esa Tikkanen, Teemu Selanne and Jere Lehtinen. Teemu's boat is incredible, and the company on the boat ride was even better. Hey, what's that old enforcer/referee doing with all these Finnish hockey legends?




A view from the water on our way to lunch on an island in the Helsinki harbor.




This was my ride during my stay in Helsinki. The vintage car is owned by Teemu Kaukonen, the VP of the HJT Helsinki Referee Club. The car was certainly a head turner!




Speaking of head-turners, I must say that the distaff side of the local population in Helsinki is rather easy on the eyes.




Taking in the beauty of Helsinki with Esa and Jere. They were amused by my suggestion that they should have taken up officiating like I did.




Basking in the 20-plus hours of sunlight with a tall beer in hand and a great view, looking out to one of the little islands in Helsinki harbor. My only complaint: the beer is expensive.




A lovely warm summer Sunday. It actually hit 30 Celsius (86 Fahrenheit) on this day.




A cobblestone street viewed from one of Helsinki's outdoor cafes.




A little reminder of home: Ben and Jerry's stand at the mall in Helsinki. No, I did not get my endorsement check in the mail yet.



My host in Helsinki. Thanks for everything, Teemu!

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Paul Stewart holds the distinction of being the first U.S.-born citizen to make it to the NHL as both a player and referee. On March 15, 2003, he became the first American-born referee to officiate in 1,000 NHL games.

Today, Stewart is an officiating and league discipline consultant for the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) and serves as director of hockey officiating for the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC).

The longtime referee heads Officiating by Stewart, a consulting, training and evaluation service for officials. Stewart also maintains a busy schedule as a public speaker, fund raiser and master-of-ceremonies for a host of private, corporate and public events. As a non-hockey venture, he is the owner of Lest We Forget.

In addition to his blogs for HockeyBuzz every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, Stewart writes a column every Wednesday for the Huffington Post.