Bang and Bust

With the return of SHL action there were only two teams with more than a single game this week and they had polar opposite weeks when it came to their performance in those two games.

Brynäs and Malmö faced off in the only game on Wednesday night as the league resumed play after this seasons first international break. It was the first game for both teams in eleven days and Brynäs looked refeshed and ready to go and Malmö did not. The game was a blowout for Brynäs as they came away with the 4-0 shutout victory, led by a two goal performance by Dmytro Timashov and a total of three goals on the powerplay. Not only did they dominate on the man advantage and on the scoreboard but they also heavily outshot the Redhawks 33-13.

All teams were back on the ice on Saturday for a full day of hockey as Brynäs looked to carry the momentum from their Wednesday night win into the weekend. They came into Karlstad looking to upset the hometown crowd as Färjestad was celebrating their 90th anniversary. Unfortunately for the hometown team it was not the celebration they wanted. A pair of goals from Färjestad in the first period is all the offence they would muster and a goal in each frame from Brynäs, including a beautiful game winner from Alexander Ljungkrantz, secured the 3-2 victory as Brynäs grabbed another important three points in the standings. They now sit seventh overall and tied in points with Frölunda with 29.

Malmö, on the other hand, did not get the result they wanted from Saturdays action as they faced off against the struggling HV71 squad. The Redhawks came into the game with a three game losing streak and HV71 came in with a four game skid. Unfortunately for Malmö, they would not break the streak as a three goal second period from HV71 was enough to propel them to a 4-2 victory. With their struggles this week Malmö now sits in twelfth, just one point out of the bottom two spots.

Off Ice News

Lundqvist

Leksand has loaned their young defender Alexander Lundqvist to AIK in HockeyAllsvenskan for a short stint. The 20 year old played his first full season in the SHL last year and has appeared in 15 games with Leksand this season. But now he will be getting more ice time with AIK.

– A temporary loan is a good solution for all three parties, It is important that young players get match time to continue their development, says Leksands Sporting Director Thomas Johansson.

Nilsson

Frölunda has also loaned one of their young prospects to a team in HockeyAllsvenskan as Liam Dower Nilsson has been sent to Västerås. The 19 year old has appeared in 18 games with Frölunda this season and has scored a goal and three assists. His situation is similar to Lundqvists as the team has struggled to find him enough ice time.

– Since we cannot offer Liam the ice time and role he needs, we have found a good collaboration with Västerås that favors his continued development, says sports director Fredrik Sjöström.

Heineman

After impressing the Montréal Canadiens and looking poised to stay in North America for the season it is now official that Emil Heineman will return to the SHL to play with Leksand. The 21 year old forward was drafted 43rd overall in the 2020 NHL entry draft by Montréal, but unfortunately suffered a hand injury in a preseason game and was unable to make his NHL debut.

– Emil has not played competitive matches yet, only training matches. He is really charged up for the season now and to be able to play real matches now. We'll see when the time comes, but it will be a lot of fun to see him with us again, says Thomas Johansson.