SHL Playoffs: Lulea avoid clean sweep with narrow victory over Skelleftea

Brendan Shinnimin gets the adulation from the Lulea fans
Brendan Shinnimin gets the adulation from the Lulea fansSimon Eliasson / Bildbyran Photo Agency / Profimedia

Swedish Hockey League (SHL) reigning champions Lulea have managed to avoid suffering a clean sweep in their playoff semi-final series against Skelleftea, as they held on for a 3-2 victory in game four.

Skelleftea's winning goal in the fourth period of overtime in game one looked like Lulea's only chance to upset the number-one seeds in this series, as they went down 5-0 away and 3-1 back on home ice in the next two meetings.

But hopes were renewed midway through the first period this time, after Pontus Johansson was penalised for holding the stick, Isac Hedqvist did well to maintain possession by knocking the puck back to Brendan Shinnimin to strike home on the powerplay.

However, Lulea failed to take advantage of further powerplays either side of the 20-minute mark, and that looked critical 14 minutes into period two, when Mikkel Aagaard and Oscar Lindberg stretched the home defence before teeing up Arvid Lundberg to score the equaliser.

Lulea had other ideas, though, and were back in front four minutes on when Mathias Brome picked out an unguarded Jesper Sellgren, who had time to rifle a second goal for the hosts past Linus Soderstrom.

And that gave the home side all the momentum coming out to start the third period, and it was that man Shinnimin - again receiving an assist from Hedqvist - who used it to full effect after just 40 seconds to score his second and open a two-goal lead.

Lulea were made to sweat for the rest of the period, as Oskar Vuollet pulled a goal back less than two minutes later, and with four minutes to play, Viktor Grahn thought he had sent the game to overtime, only to see his goal disallowed for impeding goaltender Matteus Ward.

But the Norrbotten County club held on to win 3-2 and take the series to game five, which takes place back in Skelleftea on Wednesday 15th.

Follow the SHL playoffs on Flashscore.