Updated 21:44 | Published 21:44
Newcomer Modo has dressed for Linköping well for a spell and a half.
It was a theater I had not seen since the days of the Sadin brothers.
Not to mention Foppa’s and Näslund’s.
He paved the way for their first SHL win in seven and a half years.
Welcome back, I guess I should start by saying.
And if it continues like this, you can’t complain about the entertainment value.
I almost rubbed my eyes after the first half, when Modou took almost complete control and took a 2-0 lead.
New team captain David Rundblad looked like the old days when he stepped up and put in the second puck just 45 seconds into the opening period.
Halva Linköping went to buy sausages when he went towards goal and bounced the ball off the nearest cross.
Rundblad who thought he would become a new Swedish reserve star in the NHL when he moved to Ottawa in 2011, after scoring 50 points (11 + 39) for Skellefteå the previous season.
As 20 years old.
But there was no progress in the NHL, although the conditions were there and soon Rundblad returned to Europe again.
He’s now back in Sweden, and I can only congratulate Modou if he continues like this.
I woke up from hibernation
After that great first period, Modou came out and played better at the start of the second half.
It took just 27 seconds before Johan Södergren made it 3-0, and then it was pure width and play towards goal, before Linköping’s in-form Klaas Östmann took a time-out just seven minutes after the halfway point of the first half.
She was right about that.
Östgots woke up from their slumber, Ty Rattie pulled it back to 3-1 and 3-2 and for a moment I thought the Angermanlanders were about to be rudely awakened from their dream.
But just nine seconds after Ratti’s second goal, Riley Woods took the lead 4-2, played perfectly by Erik Karlsson.
This was the most important goal of the match, giving Modou the ability to block and manage an impressive start to the match.
But the spell was broken in a match that finished 7-4, after Johan Sodergran made the game 6-4 and scored his third goal as Linköping came dangerously close with two quick goals at the end.
Haven’t seen since the peak
Fans can go home smiling after the most goal-rich game of the SHL season so far
The last time Modo won a game in the SHL was on March 5, 2016, when the score was 2-1 away to Karlskrona.
Then followed that fateful qualifier against Leksand, which would drop Modo in hockey in Sweden for seven long years.
You can’t go there again, but when I looked at all the expert advice, almost 90 percent had Modo in a qualifying spot this season.
They have now gotten off to a great start with a point away to Skellefteå in the first showcase and then a win in the first game at home in front of 6,570 spectators.
But experience tells us that newcomers tend to start strong, precisely because they are playing for survival immediately after landing.
But the first half of the match was some of the best I’ve seen Modo do since his heyday.
You could say that Linköping stayed on the bus, but they did it for a reason.
Färjestad’s Viktor Ijdsil and HV71’s Tommy Tekka were given five minutes and a match penalty for fighting and I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.
What’s the fight?
Instead, it was a minute-long hold, with both villains keeping their gloves on and no punches being thrown.
If this is the right spot, we will see a lot of five-minute players this winter.
Färjestad turned a 2-0 deficit into a 6-3 win after penalties and a 5-0 defeat in the third period. They ensured HV71 remained on one point after two successive home matches.
They played well though.
Farestad, on the other hand, has three consecutive 3-pointers. strong.
Örebro overshadows Färjestad at the top after turning a third successive away game away to Luleå, making 0-1 2-1 with Jonathan Lekeremaakl scoring again.
A successful start for new coach Johan Hedberg.
Örebro were down in the first showing away to Leksand and at home against Ruggel, but turned around and won.
What if Leo Karlsson returns home from Anaheim and strengthens the team?