HIFK lost the third quarter-final match in a dramatic way.
Lahti
Helsinki IFK played in Saturday's third quarterfinal match against the Pelicans in Lahti practically with his back against the wall.
Four wins are required for a place in the semifinals, but the triple play was already a “must win” for HIFK.
HIFK's plight worsened when Pelicans already took the third tie with a 3–2 overtime victory.
He became the hero of the match Lars Bryggmanwho vaccinated Kasper Kotkansalon the winning goal from a terrible passing error.
Now HIFK's complete stomach ache is no more than a loss away. HIFK, which started this season with huge investments, can start its summer vacation already on Tuesday evening, when the fourth match of the series will be played at the Nordenskiöldinkatu ice rink.
Losses in the middle, HIFK's coaching has tried to wake up the star-munching bunch of millions.
After Friday's home loss, the head coach Ville Peltonen made tough decisions for the three-way match. The offensive chains were renewed and the starting goalkeeper changed.
The first keeper failed on Friday Roope Taponen was on the flute shift on Saturday, when he made a save between the posts Niko Hovinen.
Hovinen, 36, was able to answer the shout. Among other things, Konkarivahti scored at the end of the second period in a 1–1 situation Patrik Carlsson and Konsta Hirvonen through times.
Hovinen took care of his box, but HIFK's goal-scoring efficiency dropped again.
the match the beginning promised a difficult evening for HIFK. Pelicans got the visitors into big trouble with their strong passing game, which caused puck possession in HIFK's defense zone.
The opening goal of the match was the result of HIFK's sloppy puck play in their own area. Pelicans' second chain quickly turned the game around and Carlsson shot from close range to give the home team a 1–0 lead.
However, HIFK's renewed number one chain struck a quick note. At the end of a strong attack zone rotation Jori Lehterä found in sector one Julius Nättinenwho sharply shot the puck into the upper puck.
HIFK was on top of the game on Saturday better than in his previous visit to Lahden, and was able to create more goals than the home team expected. However, the defense deck of the stadium players was rattling.
In the last minute of the second period, Pelicans' number one saw HIFK's five broken, and Nathan Schnarr exploded the Lahti ice hall into a storm of screams with his 2–1 goal.
HIFK's coaching challenged the hit as an obstruction by the goalkeeper, but the goal ruling held and the unsuccessful challenge led to HIFK being underpowered.
In the opening ten minutes of the triple set, HIFK had a great start when the Pelicans took a six-minute ice break. HIFK took advantage of its opportunity when Juha Jääskä scored the equalizer from the loose puck.
In the last minute of the third period Petteri Lindbohm fell into a hole. The puck went into the stands and HIFK was underpowered. HIFK easily killed jähy in a critical position.
Now HIFK is facing a semi-impossible obstacle.
In the history of the SC league playoffs, only once before have you gone from a 0–3 loss position to a series win. This happened in the spring of 2012, when the Blues struggled in the quarter-final series against KalPa from back to back and won 4–3.
Gathering four wins in a row has been challenging for HIFK this season anyway. HIFK could only win four matches in a row three times in the regular season. The last time was in mid-February.
Pelicans–HIFK 3–2 and (match series 3–0)
On the rise: The Pelicans' 20-year-old point guard Niklas Kokko has taken the lead as the series of matches progressed from HIFK's star team. HIFK has been able to create a moderate number of high-quality goal chances, but Kokko has blocked from the beginning of the match series with unmistakable certainty.
In the invoice: There have been no signs of HIFK's much talked about scope. HIFK has scored five goals in three matches, two of them by Julius Nättinen and two by Juha Jääskä. With Joonas Rask is one hit. About the strikers Kristian Vesalainen (0+1), Iiro Pakarinen (0+1), Jori Lehterä (0+2) and Eetu Koivistoinen (0+1) are scoreless.
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