International Hockey

IIHF – Sweden looks for intensity

IIHF - Sweden looks for intensity

When Sweden was relegated at the 2019 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship – and their archrival Finland went all the way to the final against the US and lost in a penalty shootout in Espoo – the pessimists in the country were ready to declare Swedish women’s hockey dead.

Those people probably missed how good Sweden had been at the U18 Women’s Worlds even before 2019. Just the year before, the U18 national team had made history by winning silver in the tournament. That team included talents such as Maja Nylen Persson and Lina Ljungblom, both PWHL players today. 

In 2022, the Swedes lost to Finland in the bronze medal gam. And in 2023, they upset Team USA in the semi-final and played in the final for the second time in six years. 

And last year, Sweden won the Youth Olympic Games, just like the players, born in 2000 and 2001, who grabbed that first U18 final berth. Eight players from the 2024 gold medal team are in Finland this year, and Ebba Westerlind scored the OT winner in the game against Finland to open the 2024 U18 Women’s Worlds.

In the Swedes’ game against the US – a 3-0 loss, with an empty-netter – the Americans were just a half a step ahead, despite the Swedes’ size advantage. One sign of the steps Swedish hockey has taken in recent years was that head coach Andreas Karlsson and his players didn’t take the loss with a shrug. 

“We came here to win today, but even though we created chances, we need to be better at getting to the high-danger areas,” said Karlsson. “They play with high intensity, and we couldn’t quite match it today. But it was a good test for us.”

And getting to that level of intensity comes down to creating good habits at home, according to the coach.

 “Every practice should have this intensity. Our players also need more and tougher games, to learn to win the duels, to get the pic out of the zone when it really matters.”

Fortunately for Karlsson, and Swedish hockey, their domestic league is a good place to learn those habits. 

“In the last few years, our SDHL has helped bring up new players, and it’s been fun to see,” Karlsson said.

“A little more than half the team have spent most of the season playing in the SDHL, and a couple more have split their time in the top league and the second-tier division, the NDHL.”

The Swedish league is generally considered the best in Europe, and the federation’s decision to have very lax import quotas has been beneficial. In a lineup…

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