Spengler Cup participation had kept IFK Helsinki out of Liiga action for a fortnight, but despite three losses in Davos, the capital side needed just 83 seconds to set themselves on course for victory tonight, as Petr Kodytek put them in front.
Things got better for the home side late in the opening period when Vincent Marleau made it 2-0, but not only was there time for Viljami Nieminen to get JYP on the board before 20 minutes were up, the visitors went on to turn the match on its head.
Valtteri Ojantakanen levelled the scores four minutes into the second, then just over two minutes later Nieminen grabbed his second of the game to put JYP 3-2 ahead.
However, despite five losses in all competitions ahead of this game, HIFK held firm and responded with three unanswered goals of their own - Petteri Lindbohm made it 3-3 with five minutes of the period to go, before Otto Somppi took advantage of a powerplay early in the third period.
The Helsinki side withstood late JYP pressure, and Kalle Ervasti slotted home an empty-netter in the closing stages to round off a 5-3 win that keeps HIFK just outside the Playoffs, while JYP stay second after a first loss in four.
That meant Tappara would finish the evening three points clear at the top, following their return to winning ways, beating Kiekko-Espoo 5-2 away from home.
The away side were also forced to come from behind to take the points - Kristian Tanus put them in front in the eighth minute, only for Janne Hamalainen and Santeri Virtanen to grab two goals in two minutes for the hosts.
But that was as good as it got for Kiekko-Espoo, who led for less than two minutes thanks to Kasper Simontaival's equaliser, though it wasn't until the final two minutes of the second period for Tappara to go back in front, through Julius Mattila.
With the lead restored, the Tampere side wrapped up the points in the final period, as Simontaival scored his second of the game and Oiva Keskinen grabbed another on a powerplay, both in the first six minutes.
With that, Tappara banished the memories of their loss to KooKoo at the end of 2025, while Kiekko-Espoo sit ninth after their two-match winning run came to an end.
KooKoo missed the chance to climb back above Lukko into third, as they needed penalties to earn a 3-2 victory at SaiPa. At least KooKoo's winning run is now four matches, while the shootout sealed a third loss in a row for the Lappeenranta side, who sit sixth.
Ilves have reached double figures on their winning run and moved up into fifth place with a 5-2 home win over TPS Turku. The Lynx are now only two points shy of the top four, while TPS are 10th following a third straight defeat.
TPS did not drop a place thanks to Hameenlinna, who put an end to their seven-match losing streak by beginning the new year with a 3-1 win over Jukurit, who remain two points shy of TPS in 11th place.
A third win in a row keeps KalPa in eighth place, as they edged Pelicans 2-1 at home to condemn the Lahti side to a fourth loss on the spin, as they now are just a point clear of HIFK in the final Playoff place.
Hameenlinna were unable to climb out of the bottom two following their win, as basement-dwellers Vaasan Sport were thrashed 6-0 by the side in 14th, Karpat, for whom Matyas Kantner scored a hattrick and Niklas Rubin made 32 saves in an impressive shutout.