New loss, two penalties in the match and Björklöven who is only getting close.
The top league leaders you praised before Christmas turned into a team in crisis ahead of the playoffs.
Modo became the shadow of Autumn Victory Machine.
Everything is going wrong now.
It was another pitch-black evening in the derby against Djurgården at the packed Hägglunds Arena.
A stinging loss with 4-3 going into overtime and a threat coming from behind.
Björklöven is one point behind now and in much better form and they comfortably cleaned AIK 5-1 earlier this evening.
I don’t know what to say about the Modo puzzle and the post-Christmas transformation.
But not much is true.
The only positive is that they are not in free fall, but that is only because they had a great fall and got away from everything and everyone.
They had been top league leaders recently before the Christmas break, dropping fifteen points to second place.
This margin means they can’t fall very far.
Strange transformation for Modo
But it’s bad enough for all the mods that Björklöven gets up and breathes down his neck..
Modo has been leading the league since the beginning of October, when it rose to the top already in the fourth round.
They are now seriously threatened from two sides and hunted not only by Bjorkloven, but also by Mura, who are clearly the most glamorous team in the Allsvenskan hockey after Christmas, the exact opposite of the Angermanlanders.
Only four points separate now, and the Mora has an easier look and program.
No, Modo’s conversion number is one of the strangest I’ve seen.
In the post-Christmas form table, they were an average team.
Yes, not even in the top six.
Of course, injuries haunted most teams, not least tonight’s opponent Djurgården.
Did the signatures remove harmony?
But I wonder if sporting director Henrik Gradín hasn’t dribbled himself with all the late signings of a winning team.
Marcus Villa and Daniel Brickley were brought in from Västerwijk and Nick Halloran from Timra.
Players who should have made the team better, but instead it was the other way around. Has harmony been disturbed, has the hierarchy in the team been affected?
The question now is to keep Modo away before the seriousness begins.
It is clear that anything can happen, the circumstances are there, but they do not look bright
But for Djurgården, it’s more of a positive, and Emil Berglund’s 4-3 extra-time selection was an extra confidence boost.
I still believe, even if with foolish obstinacy, that Djurgården will make it back to the SHL.
But looking at the list of injuries and what they could add to it before the quarter starts on March 17, it’s not far off.
Now they took an early 1-0 lead, when Sebastian Strandberg scored a surprising direct shot from distance and Tex Williamson in the penalty area wasn’t quite awake as the ball traveled between the legs.
Until then, it was just a matter of Modo, so he had his reasons.
Then a slam dunk, when Modu’s Oscar Peterson crossed for Modu defender Edvin Hammerlund at the back end just yards from the edge.
As much disrespect as you get
A real steal and Peterson got five minutes and a penalty and can probably expect to be reported to the disciplinary committee.
It was as disrespectful as it gets.
Now it was 2-0 in Djurgården’s favour, although it took some time before Daniel Brodin was able to press in a free position in front of goal.
There were 51 seconds left on the dismissal in that instance, but Djurgården had extra time when Ludwig Rensfeldt pulled a puck in front of goal and put it in an empty box.
There I thought it was over.
Perhaps the entire Hägglunds Square thought so.
Johan Garbenlöf is definitely on the right track since taking over after Joachim Wagervall was sent off
Niklas Sundström wore his shirt on the roof before the match and was excelling at Modo this evening. Although it was discontinued long ago.
He managed to show the entire tribute, just as he would on the ice.
We got to know everything about his career from the beginning as a shy six-year-old until he was awarded SM Gold in 2007, with plenty of humor and aloofness.
It was better than the match itself.
I’ve followed Niklas’ entire career from junior to senior and few have been more optimistic on the ice and at the same time had this constant sparkle in their eyes on the sidelines.
No, a great player like someone deserves all the accolades.