Sweden: Quarter final preview

Top three teams tied on 96 points, 26 points between firsta and last place and only six points between the last playoff spot and last place. An extremely even season of Elitserien has finished and the playoffs starts tonight with the game HV71-AIK.

Eurohockey.com takes a look at the quarter finals matchups and makes a summary of the regular season in Sweden's top league.

HV71 - AIK

HV71 won the league and got to pick their quarter final opponent first. HV71 has a winning tradition and despite that it felt that their season wasn't as good as previous year's they still won the league. Key player Johan Davidsson missed most of the finish of the regular season but are back in time for the playoffs. They have two strong goalies and a very strong power play. The penalty killing however is the worst in the league.

AIK who is making their first season in Elitseren after several year's of absence were expected to finish last by most experts at the start of the season and it can't have been many that expected them to reach the playoffs. But a lot of heart and great goaltending by Viktor Fasth took the Stockholm based team to the playoffs. On ice the team is lead by former NHL veteran Dick Tärnström but only have a few players with star quality but the team has shown that hard work often beats star quality.

However HV71 should be able to win this quarter final quite easy. AIK had to give away of lot of energy on making the playoffs and the question is if they can recharge their batteries for the playoffs. Eurohockey.com predicts a 4-1 win for HV71.

Färjestad - Brynäs

Färjestad has finished the season with a lot of injury problems on defense and goaltending but still managed to finish second in the league. A strong performance with a team that doesn't feel as strong on paper as previous years. But Färjestad is another club with a winning tradition and as players return in time for the playoffs they will be a great contender for the title. Färjestad was the best away team in the regular season and Alexander Salak has also been one of the best players of the lead.

Brynäs managed to fill the gap behind former goalie Jakob Markström and reached the playoff with a quite good margin. Rookie defender Mattias Ekholm has been impressive with 33 points and Brynäs have a lot of good young players like Jakob Silfverberg, Calle Järnkrok and Johan Larsson. The top scorer Andreas Dackell has an injury, a big disadvantage for Brynäs.

Färjestad feels like a more solid and even team than Brynäs. Eurohockey.com thinks that Färjestad will be the stronger team over seven games and predicts 4-2 for Färjestad.

Skellefteå - Linköping

Skellefteå has been one of the most impressive teams of the regular season and it seemed like they would win the regular season but a dip at the of the season and they missed out on goal difference. The team has three top scorers of the league, Joakim Lindström who returned after some quite bad years in the NHL made an impressive 60 points in 54 games whlie the new Finn Mikko Lehtonen scored 30 goals and 58 assist. The super talent David Rundblad scored 50 points from his position as defender. A lot of the points scored on power play as Skellefteå is the best power play team in the league.

Linköping has had a up and down season and finished fifth. They have one of the strongest defense of the league with veteran Magnus Johansson and the Finnish goalie Fredrik Norrena. They also have very strong offensive duo in the Czechs Jaroslav Hlinka and Jan Hlavac. They could be the big outsider of the playoffs.

Linköping could be a bad pick for Skellefteå who has had injury problems with injuries on Lindström and several defenders. Special teams and goaltending will probably very decisive here. Eurohockey.com predicts a 4-3 win for Skellefteå.

Luleå - Djurgården

Luleå's start to the season was a sensation as many believed they would have a hard time reaching the playoffs. But young head coach Jonas Rönnquist has done a very good work building the best defensive team in the league. Together with some offensive keys like the Abbott twins and Pär Arlbrandt it could take them long.

Last year's finalist Djurgården has been in the middle of table for most of the season. Last year they exploded in the playoffs, could they do it again this year. They have had some goalkeeping problems but both Ridderwall and Owuya seems more solid now. Injury problems on some offensive keys have also been a trouble and Nils Ekman is out for the season after suffering a stroke. Djurgården has a lot of players that contribute but no real top scrorer with Marcus Krüger being the top scorer on 35 points.

This matchup could go either way but Luleå is the stronger team on defense and that will be the key here. Eurohockey.com predicts a 4-3 win for Luleå.


Those who didn't make it

Frölunda is the big disappointment, perhaps the highest payroll in the league but still missed out on the playoff. General manager Kent Norberg was fired during the season and probably more staff and players will have to leave after this season where Frölunda failed to big a strong team.

Timrå was once again extremely hurt by injuries and used 39 different players during the season. Six of them were goalkeepers. Weak play in their own zone together with goalkeeping without confidence left Timrå outside the playoff but after this season Timrå is probably happy to stay out of Kvalserien.

Those who have to fight to stay up

Södertälje having to play in the Kvalserien (relegation round) is no surprise but with quite weak goaltending and a thin roster they made a solid season that almost took them to the playoffs. Linus Videll who scored 43 points in the regular season will be important to keep Södertälje out from relegation.

The classic club MoDo is another big disappointment. Despite several good producing players Byron Ritchie and Per-Åge Skröder and late additions like Ladislav Nagy, Lubos Bartecko and Hannu Pikkarainen they finished last. However they should be strongest team in Kvalserien and it feels like only nerves can send them down to Allsvenskan.

 

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