Here’s a look at all the SDHL action from this weekend:
Friday, December 20
Luleå 9 – Leksand 0
Luleå barely broke a sweat against tenth-ranked Leksand, and out shot them 52-10 on the way to a 9-0 win. Emma Nordin recorded a hat trick and an assist, while recently acquired Savannah Norcross registered three assists and scored her first-ever SDHL goal. Petra Nieminen extended her hot streak with two goals an three helpers, and now has an incredible 14 goals and 18 points in her last ten games. Goaltender Frida Axell, rarely tested, recorded her fourth shutout of the season and now boasts an 0.82 Goals Against Average in 11 starts. Leksand simply had no answers for Luleå’s stacked lineup, and often appeared to be playing shorthanded when they were in fact at even strength — Luleå’s extended sequences of possession in the offensive zone left the exhausted Leksand defenders gasping for air and swatting at the puck in desperation. Goalie Ellen Jonsson did an admirable job in the Leksand goal, turning away 45 shots, but she could not prevent the inevitable. Luleå remains at the top of the standings with 54 points.
SDE 3 – Skellefteå 4 SO
In a back-and-forth game, Skellefteå’s Marah Wagner scored the lone goal of the shootout to send her team home victorious. SDE’s Malia Schneider opened the scoring, sniping post and in on the power play, as she continued her recent stretch of strong play — she now has five points in five games. Skellefteå responded late in the first period when Aino Karppinen collected her own rebound and deftly shovelled it beyond SDE goalie Lovisa Berndtsson. In the second frame, SDE notched a second power play goal of the evening, when veteran Lisa Johansson tipped in her fourth of the season. Skellefteå responded quickly, and took the lead on goals by Ida Kuoppala and Mikayla Lantto. Not to be outdone, SDE answered again, when Liliane Perreault was sprung on a partial break and beat SKE’s Camryn Drever five hole. The third period and overtime solved nothing, so the game headed to a shootout. Wagner scored the eventual winner with a slick chip shot over the glove of Berndtsson, and Drever denied every SDE attempt, sealing the victory for Skellefteå.
Frölunda 2 – Linköping 3
Frölunda got out to an early lead on goals by defender Nellie Svensson and Felicia Wikner-Zienkiewicz. Svensson’s, the first of her SDHL career was a straight snipe from the top of the right circle that seemed to catch Linköping goalie Ebba Svensson Träff off guard and beat her shot side. Minutes later, it was Wikner-Zienkiewicz, who sliced across the slot and out-waited Svensson Träff before spinning and firing the puck back against the grain. Just like that, it was 2-0 Frölunda. FHC has been guilty of letting leads slip away at times this season, and seemed determined to avoid that mistake in this match. They fired sixteen shots on Ebba Svensson Träff in each period, a total of 48 shots for the game, but could not beat her again. Svensson Träff’s heroics kept the game close and set the stage for Linköping’s unlikely comeback. First, Moa Wernblom scored a power play marker to get LHC on the board and reduce Frölunda’s lead to one. In the third period, desperately working for the tying goal, Linköping was awarded a penalty shot, but FHC goalie Steph Neatby made the save to preserve her team’s lead. Next, LHC had what appeared to be the tying goal called back due to a high stick on the play. With time running out, captain Sara Hjalmarsson came through, driving low through the right lane before snapping the puck past Neatby. Tie game. The goal was Hjalmarsson’s fifth in as many games. Less than two minutes later, more LHC heroics as pinching defender Lindsay Agnew scored on a wraparound to finally give her team the lead. Svensson Träff shut the door the rest of the way, and Linköping earned their unlikely comeback victory.
HV71 2 – Djurgården 1 OT
What this game lacked in goals, it made up for in scoring chances. Despite playing a scoreless first period, each team had a handful of high quality opportunities, each denied by the excellent goaltending of HV’s Viktorie Svejdová and DIF’s Lia Leiderö Palmlöv. In the second period, HV finally broke the deadlock when Julia Nearis sniped a beautiful Elin Svensson pass off the post and in. The goal was American Nearis’ tenth of the season. Early in the third period, Czech magician Hana Haasová was awarded a penalty shot and used a smooth as silk backhand toe drag to fool countryman Svejdová and knot the score at one apiece. In overtime, HV71’s Teghan Inglis received a pass out of the corner from newcomer Audrey-Anne Veillette. Inglis did not convert on the initial shot, but battled and fought and willed the puck into the back of the net, finally scoring on her second rebound to the delight of her bench. The win was HV’s second in a row after their unlikely shutout of league leaders Luleå on December 8.
Saturday, December 21
Frölunda 1 – Djurgården 2
After a scoreless opening frame, Djurgården got on the board first when Sara Säkkinen broke free and cut across the low slot, freezing goalie Maja Helge with a little feint before sliding the puck past her outstretched toe to make it 1-0. Some lacklustre Frölunda defending gave spunky DIF two more quality scoring chances immediately after their goal, but Helge was able to make a pair of big saves to keep her team within one. Frölunda continued to look rudderless as the second period progressed, perhaps due to the absence of star forward and leader Michelle Karvinen, who missed her second consecutive game for undisclosed reasons. Frölunda was also playing a second game without speedy Emilia Vesa, the absence of her pace apparent to all watching. DIF extended their lead in the third period when Tereza Plosová built up a head of steam in the neutral zone, split the Frölunda defence and snapped the puck past Helge to make it 2-0. Frölunda pushed back and eventually got a goal from Elisa Holopainen, her 16th of the season, but it was too little too late as Frölunda dropped their second straight game. Win the win, DIF leapfrogged Brynäs to take over sole possession of fourth place, while Frölunda remained stagnant in third.
HV71 0 – Linköping 2
Linköping was riding high after a comeback victory over Frölunda on Friday while HV71 had cobbled together a modest two-game winning streak that they hoped to extend to three. Linköping opened the scoring in the second period as their power play expired. Lindsay Agnew, who scored the game-winning goal against Frölunda on Friday, fired a wrist shot through traffic that handcuffed HV goaltender Viktorie Svejdová and found its way to the back of the net to make it 1-0 LHC. In the third period, HV often struggled to clear their zone, perhaps missing the speed and tenacity of firefly Kennedy Bobyck, still out nursing an injury. It was on one such failed breakout that LHC struck again, when Marthe Pabsdorff Brunvold forced a HV turnover that was collected by Lova Blom. Blom quickly drove to the net, deked and beat Svejdová five hole to give her team a 2-0 lead that they would hold until the final buzzer. The shutout was Linköping goaltender Ebba Svensson Träff’s sixth in 21 starts this season.
Sunday, December 22
Leksands IF 0 – Skellefteå 1
Skellefteå is fighting to stay out of the relegation round after the shocking revelation that the team had broken league import rules on multiple occasions and was thus penalized ten points in the standings. Following the completion of the regular season, teams ranked 1-8 will compete in the SDHL playoffs. Teams 9 and 10 will compete with the top two teams from the lower league, NDHL, for qualification to the SDHL in 2025-26. Leksand, for their part, are almost certain to have to play for the right to stay in the top Swedish league — the team sits dead last with only 12 points in the standings, ten points behind ninth place HV71. Coming into Sunday’s match, Leksand had been shutout in consecutive games and was desperate for both a goal and a win. The team’s number one goaltender, Emma Polusny, has put up very good numbers this season, considering the volume of shots she faces and the lack of goal support. She regularly stops more than 30 shots per game and has maintained an excellent .930 save percentage in 14 starts. Polusny kept this game close, and did some of her best work during a spectacular second period where her team was outshot 19-1, but she cannot score goals. Leksand’s offense was once again impotent, scoring zero times on 20 shots. Skellefteå was only slightly more effective, scoring once on 37 shots, but they created quality chances and continued to look like a team that will be in the SDHL playoffs come season’s end. SKE’s Mikayla Lantto finally broke the deadlock in the third period when she batted a rebound past Polusny, who made 36 of 37 saves in the loss. At the other end of the rink, Camryn Drever made 20 saves for the shutout.
