ST. PAUL – Erik Haula and Mikael Granlund first met as teenagers back home in Finland. Granlund was a much-hyped center with the kind of ability that placed him on teams of older players growing up.

It was on a freezing December night in the capital of Helsinki when Olga Ahtinen and Eveliina Summanen helped Finland reach one of football's promised lands. Both Tottenham Hotspur midfielders starred ...