Before the last round in the SHL, there is a planning mess for many teams.
It is uncertain for them what is happening and where they will go after Thursday’s games.
– You dare not see anything, anything can happen, says Timra coach Antte Carlson.
For five months, the SHL’s 14 teams met week by week over 51 innings.
Before the last 52nd round, the margins are still small and the uncertainty is high.
The position of the table can still be divided into seven clear parts:
- Växjö and Skellefteå finished first or second
- Farjestad finished third
- Orebro is fourth or fifth
- Frölunda, Oskarshamn and Timrå are all battling it out for the top six spots
- Leksand, Rögle, and Luleå play the last 16 of the finals
- Linköping and HV71 finished playing
- Brinas and Malmö meet in the qualifiers
Snow distributed the first smoke
Timrå flew to Ängelholm on Wednesday for the match against Rögle on Thursday night.
For their part, the chaos in Midland begins with a long wait when their plane gets stuck in Arlanda and they are unable to take off from there in the blizzard.
They also have no idea where to go after the game in northern Scania.
Timra, seventh in the table, currently holds a place in the last 16 but is chasing down the top six to reach straight into the quarter-finals.
On Tuesday evening, it was a convincing 4-0 home win against Brennas.
– We’re already in the playoff mood. We had a good meeting before these last two regular matches which will affect our future. We live in a playoff with the conditions for playing our best ice hockey, says Ante Carlsson.
Go to the quarter-finals
If Timrå finishes seventh, it will already be the round of 16 on Saturday afternoon in Leksand…or Luleå…or against Rögle in Ängelholm again…
If Timra finishes fifth or sixth, the quarter-finals won’t be until next Friday in Örebro or against Verstad in Karlstad.
– The easiest and, of course, the best is to get straight to the quarter-finals, and then go home to Timrå to recharge and prepare properly. It is clear that we are moving to the top six now, and then we cannot influence what is not in our hands. If you look at the results done and most recent during Tuesday evening, anything is possible. Ante Carlsson says Örebro and Varjestad would make formidable opponents.
Additional matches and clubs groups
Planning and preparing for the final sixteen that can be played at three different ends of the sprawling country is the messiest thing.
– Once we are in place in Ängelholm, we will sit down and make three different plans for three different locations. It’s three different trips and three different conditions. We may have double shelves with us, red shelves and white shelves. We paid for a minivan with extra racquets, grinding machines and other things. We have everything with us to be prepared for three different scenarios, says Ante Carlson.
“the riddle somehow”
It’s a practical challenge and he admits it’s been a problem for them.
– We don’t know if we’ll have time to get to Luleå from Ängelholm during Friday. It’s a piece. If there is a flight, we will bring things with us. There are not many carts chasing the epidemic either, and not everyone takes the equipment. We have to get it together somehow. That’s what qualifying should be like and make us enjoy it, it’s just the practical part that’s hard, says Ante Carlsson.
If it were Leksand, it would be a bus from Ängelholm.
Or Timrå might well stay to face Rögle again.
In the case of a team like Linköping, the disappointment was great after they missed their fifth consecutive SM playoffs.
On Wednesday, there was only one player on the ice for practice… second goaltender Jesper Myrenberg.
Ranking of all teams after 51 matches
1) Växjö – 99 points +37
Meetings in the last round: Brinas gone
So that they can stop: one or two
Then wait: Ready for the quarter-finals, second leg Thursday 16 March
They may experience: Växjö meets one of the winners among the four round of 16 teams. It could be Leksand, Rögle, Luleå, Timrå, Oskarshamn, or Frölunda.
2) Skeleftea 96 points +46
Meetings in the final round: Orebro at home
So that they can stop: one or two
Then wait: Ready for the quarter-finals, second leg Thursday 16 March
They may experience: Skellefteå will face one of the winners among the four round of 16 teams. It could be Leksand, Rögle, Luleå, Timrå, Oskarshamn, or Frölunda.
3) Farjestad 87 points +13
Meetings in the last round: Frölunda is gone
So that they can stop: third (verb)
Then wait: Ready for the quarter-finals, first leg on Friday 17 March
They may experience: It will face Färjestad sixth in the table. At the moment it is Oskarshamn. It can also be Frölunda or Timrå.
4) Orebro – 83 points +15
Meetings in the final round: Skelleftea is gone
So that they can stop: four or five
Then wait: Ready for the quarter-finals, Friday, March 17, in the event that it finishes fourth at home versus the fifth, in the event that it finishes fifth away from home versus the fourth.
They may experience: Orebro He may face the fifth or fourth. Currently the fifth Frölunda. It could also be Oskarshamn or Temra.
5) Frolunda 83 points +3
Meetings in the last round: Ferry city at home
So that they can stop: Four, five, six or seven
Then wait: Quarter-finals on Friday 17 March and they need to finish fourth to be at home, or Round of 16 away on Saturday 11 March
They may experience: In the quarter-finals, 6th-placed Frölunda will face Färjestad, 4th- or 5th-placed Örebro, in the round of 16, the 7th-placed teams will face the 10th-placed team, which may be Luleå, Rögle or Leksand.
6) Oscarshamn 78 points +9
Meetings in the final round: HV71 at home
So that they can stop: Fifth, sixth and seventh
Then wait: Quarter-finals on Friday 17 March away, or Round of 16 away on Saturday 11 March
They may experience: In the quarter-finals, Oskarshamn will face fourth-placed Örebro or sixth-placed Varjestad, and in the Round of 16 it will face seventh-placed Örebro, which may be Lulea, Rogl or Leksand.
7) Temera 78 points +6
Meetings in the final round: Rogel is gone
So that they can stop: Fifth, sixth and seventh
Then wait: Quarter-finals on Friday 17 March away, or Round of 16 away on Saturday 11 March
They may experience: Timra in the quarter-finals where the fifth will face the fourth-placed Örebro or the sixth-placed third-placed Verjestad, in the round of 16 they face the seventh-placed 10, which can be Lulea, Rugli or Leksand.
8) Lexand 74 points B-8
Meetings in the final round: Linkoping is gone
So that they can stop: Eight, nine, or ten
Then wait: Round of 16 on Saturday, March 11, at eight or at home at nine or ten
They may experience: Leksand may face Frölunda, Oskarshamn, Timrå, Rögle or Luleå at the age of eight, nine or ten.
9) Rogell 72 points, B-8
Meetings in the final round: Timrå is at home
So that they can stop: Eight, nine, or ten
Then wait: Round of 16 on Saturday, March 11, at eight or at home at nine or ten
They may experience: Rögle may face Frölunda, Oskarshamn, Timrå, Leksand or Luleå at the age of eight, nine or ten.
10) Lulia 71 points by 11 points
Meetings in the final round: Malmö at home
So that they can stop: Eight, nine, or ten
Then wait: Round of 16 on Saturday, March 11, at eight or at home at nine or ten
They may experience: Luleå may face Frölunda, Oskarshamn, Timrå, Leksand or Rögle at the age of eight, nine or ten.
11) Linköping 67 points by 29 points
Meetings in the final round: Play sand at home
So that they can stop: eleven or twelve
Then wait: summer vacation
They may experience: Vacancies retirees on the golf course.
12) HV71, 65 points, 16
Meetings in the final round: Oscarshamn is gone
So that they can stop: eleven or twelve (practical)
Then wait: summer vacation
They may experience: Vacancies retirees at the bowling alley.
13) Brinas – 65 points – 32 points
Meetings in the last round: Växjö is at home
So that they can stop: 13 (practically obvious)
Then wait: Ready for the qualifiers, the second leg is Tuesday, March 14th
They may experience: Malmö (ready)
14) Malmö – 58 points – 25 points
Meetings in the last round: Lulia went
So that they can stop: 14 (obvious)
Then wait: Ready for the qualifiers, first leg on Tuesday 14 March
They may experience: Brinas (once)
The quarter-finals, semi-finals, final and play-offs are played in best-of-seven matches with the best team in the table starting at home and having home advantage.
The Round of 16 is a best of three match with the best team in the table having home advantage according to the standings, away on Saturday, at home on Monday and at home on Tuesday.
The quarter-final matches will begin on Thursday and Friday next week, with two matches per day.