It looked as if it was going to be another dark evening at Hovet för Djurgården.
The SSK heel sang about the hokita.
Then came a development I did not expect.
Kroger, Klassen and Brodin have postponed crisis headlines for at least a while.
From Liljas Arena and Nybro–Brynäs to Hovet and Djurgården–Södertälje.
From a lively newcomer to two of the best teams that stumbled a lot in the beginning.
From the crowded square to the conclusion in the crowded Hovet.
From one giant on ice (Brynäs) to another (Djurgården) it’s at least as bad. Not least because last season they spent nearly seven million kroner on the SHL umbrella.
Early anxiety meeting, must-have meeting, crisis meeting.
Dear baby has many names.
Or we can see the positive side of Djurgården – Södertälje in Hovet as an opportunity to start something new.
Who won then, of course.
And it became Djurgarden. Something very few believed after two terms.
Some nights Linus Fidel plays at a level of his own in this league and that’s been a long spell, read: two spells. When Fidel decides, it seems like he does as little as he wants on the ice.
The build-up to Södertälje’s main goal was fantastic. Although the Odelius/Ytterell backmatch in this situation was the opposite.
After a slightly hesitant start away from home, SSK found energy. Emile Alba blocked Viktor Nilsson over the edge and into the Djurgården penalty area.
Dominic Turgeon could have made it 2-0 too.
Djurgården tried to fight hockey for not playing hockey and it went like this.
There is every reason to worry
I don’t know how many times defensemen threw the ball out of their zone or threw it blind in the first period. Yes, almost as many times as Djurgården has hit life-threatening passes straight through the middle.
The powerplay is as strange as it was earlier in the season.
“The puck game has to get better,” captain Krueger said after the first period, and that was an understatement.
The Södertälje team didn’t play a big game, but in two periods they still had a game, a safety with and without the puck, and then they had Linus Videll.
The SSK striker continued his display early in the second half when he played the puck to Viktor Liljegren, who was allowed to advance the puck undisturbed after Djurgården made a small kick on a backcheck.
Markus Krüger managed to score the first goal of the season when just over half of Södertälje’s players thought it was time for a change.
But Linus Wedel made it 3-1 five minutes before half-time, after Djurgården was fouled again in his own area.
When nearly half of the third period had been played and their team was leading 3-1, the large SSK crowd sang about “Hockeyettan – Here Comes Djurgården”.
Maybe it was the jinx of the season.
Johan Garbenlöf tossed the chains before the third period — and paid dividends.
Top intended players such as Magwood and Liss were put on the bench.
Show the right player the way
Linus Claassen was placed in a series with Ludwig Reinsfeldt and Daniel Brodin. Suddenly something happened.
Daniel Brodin broke one of Djurgården’s and Djurgården’s strongest clean sheets this season when he headed in Linus Klaassen’s shot to make it 2-3.
And soon after, it was time for Klaassen to pick up his clean sheet of the season when he fought on the rebound from Brodin’s shot.
Markus Krüger had the assist on both goals.
Klaassen, Brodin and Kruger, it was the right players who showed the way when it was needed most.
The winning goal also came 3:32 minutes before the end of the third period. Danielle Glad (of all) found the sweet spot with a shot from the blue line.
The turnaround was complete and the goal drought, point drought and home bogey were all dropped.
A victory can mean a lot.
Södertälje then?
Yes, it is sometimes safe and orderly, spiced with Linus Wedel’s brilliance.
But there’s no spark, there’s just a little something extra missing so far this season.
The victory over Djurgården was an excuse for a poor start. Now they lost a 1-3 lead in the third period to their worst opponent.
Only three points separate Västervik in the qualification spot.
I have much higher expectations for Södertälje than what has been shown so far.
