Skellefteå AIK are just one win away from the SHL playoff final after a dramatic overtime victory in a wild, intense semifinal game. Andreas Johnson emerged as the hero, scoring the winning goal in a 7-6 nail-biter.
– It's an incredible feeling, Johnson told TV4's broadcast.
Skellefteå started strong, grabbing an early lead in the second minute. Lars Johansson gave up a rebound on Dylan Sikura's shot, allowing Jonathan Johnson to capitalize and open the scoring at 1-0.
However, their joy was short-lived. Just five minutes later, Frölunda capitalized on a power play. Mikael Ruohomaa won the faceoff and found Jere Innala, who displayed his goal-scoring prowess with a one-timer, netting his seventh goal of the playoffs.
The game then turned into a goal-fest. Skellefteå regained the lead thanks to Linus Lindström, but barely a minute later, Tom Nilsson equalized with a dazzling solo effort, weaving past the entire defense to make it 2-2.
The back-and-forth battle continued, with the score reaching 4-5 with just fifteen minutes remaining. Frölunda thought they had tied it up with a goal from Henrik Tömmernes, but the goal was disallowed after video review.
Things went from bad to worse for Frölunda when Christian Folin had a moment of misfortune, mistakenly firing the puck into his own net for a 4-6 lead in front of a stunned home crowd.
Frölunda didn't give up, though. Albin Sundin and Ruohomaa managed to score two quick goals, forcing the game into overtime.
In overtime, Skellefteå's Johnson stepped up and became the hero of the match. With the score tied, he scored the game-winning goal, sending Skellefteå to victory.
Skellefteå now leads the series 3-1 and need just one more win to return to the SM finals for a second consecutive year.
– A close semifinal decided in sudden death – it doesn't get better than that, said Johnson.
Match facts
Frölunda – Skellefteå AIK: 7–6
Goals : 0–1 (1.38) Jonathan Johnson (Dylan Sikura, Andreas Johnson), 1–1 (6.50) Jere Innala (Mikael Ruohomaa) five against four, 1–2 (8.36) Linus Lindström (Arvid Lundberg, Filip Sandberg) , 2–2 (9.28) Tom Nilsson (Linus Högberg, David Edstrom), 2–3 (21.03) Axel Sandin Pellikka (Måns Forsfjäll, Anton Heikkinen), 3–3 (28.04) Max Friberg (Mikael Ruohomaa, Malte Strömwall), 3–4 (28.17) Rickard Hugg (Anton Heikkinen, Oscar Lindberg), 4–4 (41.44) Jere Innala (Malte Strömwall, Max Friberg), 4–5 (46.03) Jonathan Johnson (Oscar Lindberg, Axel Sandin Pellikka) five against four, 4–6 (48.26) Pär Lindholm, 5–6 (49.11) Albin Sundin (Henrik Tömmernäs), 6–6 (58.02) Mikael Rouhomaa (Henrik Tömmernäs, Jere innala), 7–6 (76.09) Andreas Johnson ( Lindström, Sikura), five against four.
Shots: 39–34.
Penalty minutes: 12–6.