SDHL Halfway Check-In: Part 2 (5-1)

The SDHL, Sweden's top division, is now on break for the next leg of the Euro Hockey Tour, signaling the midway point of their schedule. There's a very defined upper and lower half of the table thus far, and the second part of this check-in will focus on the former.

SDE HF (8-0-4-6, 28 pts, 5th of 10)

SDE is led by a number of recognizable faces to North American fans. Gabrielle David and Samantha Cogan, formerly of PWHL Montréal and Toronto, respectively, are each above a point per game to pace the team in scoring. Goaltenders Kassidy Sauvé and Emma Söderberg have solidified themselves as the best tandem outside of Gothenburg, each putting up a goals against average below 2 and a save percentage above .930. Despite these numbers, though, Sauvé has a record of 3-7, and Söderberg only moved to 5-3 following a shutout in the last game before the break. What’s been going on with SDE, who on paper should certainly be higher than their current position?

The answer is simple yet mystifying: this team cannot win one-goal games for their lives. SDE are 1-7 in games decided by a single score, winning only their most recent one on Oct. 19 against last-place HV71. Additionally, while they haven’t had any serious injuries, each of their top five scorers in David, Cogan, Tereza Pištěková, Lisa Johansson, and Mathea Fischer have missed between one and three games, preventing them from building much momentum. Should bounces go their way more often the rest of the way, SDE has the ability to make some real noise, but as it stands they sit at the bottom of the top half.

Player to Watch: Nova Åberg

With an average age of 25.8, SDE has the oldest active roster in the SDHL, a full two and a half years clear of the next closest in Färjestad. This only makes the 17-year-old Åberg stand out even more, as does her first goal this season being scored against a powerhouse in Luleå. She’s third in scoring among players born in 2008, behind Tilde Sundnäs Grillfors of Brynäs and Luleå’s Inez Nygren, who coincidentally scored the winning goal against SDE in the aforementioned game.  While Åberg’s yet to make an appearance with Sweden’s U18 team, her performance this season might just change that.

MoDo Hockey (9-1-1-6, 30 pts, 4th of 10)

MoDo suffered massive offseason losses in the form of Andrea Brändli, the reigning SDHL Goalie of the Year, and leading scorer Adéla Šapovalivová, yet seemingly hasn’t missed a beat. Replacing Šapovalivová’s offense has been a group effort led by Ebba Hedqvist, who broke out in the first half with 19 points and is on pace to shatter her career highs. North American newcomers Justine Reyes, Sarah Marchand, Alyssa McLeod, and Neena Brick have chipped in nicely, while Mira Hallin’s overcome a delayed start to her season to begin a breakout of her own. The main concern for MoDo is sustainability, as their team shooting percentage is currently the second-highest in the SDHL despite not having the same level of talent as Luleå (directly ahead of them) and Frölunda (directly behind them). They’ve suffered an additional blow as of late too, as they’ll be without Swedish national team member Wilma Sundin the rest of the way due to injury.

As for the crease, it was expected to be Lucy Morgan filling Brändli’s skates, but she’s yet to play a game this season. Instead, after joining the team late, it’s been Tindra Holm who’s taken the starting job and ran with it. The former Minnesota-Duluth netminder has been outstanding in her 11 starts, putting up a 1.82 GAA, .934 SV%, and two shutouts to boot. Holm has turned her solid performance into a good bit of stability, as she extended her contract with MoDo for an additional three years at the start of October.

Player to Watch: Aoi Shiga

The elder Shiga has thrived in her first season in the SDHL. She’s become a legitimate top-pair option for MoDo alongside Linnéa Andersson, playing solid defense in addition to her nine points which put her in a tie for fourth among blueliners. With Sydney Pedersen missing significant time to begin the season and MoDo already not having as many big names on defense as the other playoff contenders, Shiga’s emergence has been more than welcomed.

Luleå HF (11-2-0-5, 37 pts, 3rd of 10)

Now, onto the other Shiga's squad. Nothing sums up Luleå’s season better to me than a particularly comedic four-second span on Oct. 12, where defender Nadia Mattivi came oh-so-close to pulling off a Michigan, only for Sarah Bujold to be immediately given five and a game for spearing. An early rough patch precipitated by penalty trouble and the unavailability of key forwards, whether it be due to injury or supplemental discipline, is what’s keeping the perennial finalist out of the top two for now.

Luleå’s blueline has been their lifeline as they’ve worked through this stretch, even as Sara Grahn’s been somewhat uninspiring as the starting goalie. Mattivi’s obviously been outstanding, as has Erica Rieder, but Jenni Hiirikoski and Johanna Fällman performing as they have following major health concerns in the offseason has been great to see. Luleå are back at full strength now, and look set to tear up the SDHL in the second half.

Player to Watch: Petra Nieminen

With due respect to Linnéa Johansson, “unavailability of key forwards” in the above section may as well translate to “unavailability of Petra Nieminen.” Luleå is simply a different beast with the Finn in their lineup. They average 4.4 goals per game in the nine games she’s played, and just 2.3 in the nine she sat out with injury. Nieminen herself has an astonishing 17 points and 52 shots on goal, good for 1.89 and 5.78 a night, respectively. Even with half as many games played as her peers, she should challenge for a second consecutive scoring title.

Brynäs IF (10-3-2-3, 38 pts, 2nd of 10)

This team is so skilled, yet simultaneously so frustrating at times. Viivi Vainikka and Noora Tulus have formed a dynamic duo in their debut seasons with Brynäs, the former currently leading the league in scoring and the latter being named the SDHL Player of the Month for September. Hanna Thuvik is a menace in front of opponents’ nets as well as on the scoresheet. Sára Čajanová and Mina Waxin are as solid as it gets on the top pair, while Klára Peslarová and Ena Nystrøm give them a formidable goalie tandem.

2025 Top 25 Under 25: Sanni Ahola (18), Viivi Vainikka (17)

Next up in our 2025 Top 25 Under 25 are Sanni Ahola and Viivi Vainikka.

The Ice GardenElisha Côté

Yet, with all that talent and more, Brynäs is responsible for a number of the season’s lowlights. Dropping a game to an HV71 team winless through their first seven and blowing a 5-0 lead in just over a period to Färjestad aren’t marks of a team looking to unseat either of last years’ finalists. Consistency is the name of the game for Brynäs if they want any chance of doing so, and they’ve got half a season to figure it out.

Player to Watch: Jenny Antonsson

Brynäs’ third line, anchored by Antonsson, was on fire amidst their season-opening winning streak, and the team’s fall back down to earth coincided with the alternate captain drawing out of the lineup. She returned following a disappointing shutout loss to MoDo and they’ve gone 4-0 since, highlighted by a convincing victory over Luleå on Oct. 26. While she’s yet to score herself, Antonsson has proven herself to be the stabilizing force of Brynäs’ depth group, an impressive feat given the average age of every winger she’s had this season barely eclipses 17.

Frölunda HC (13-3-0-1, 45 points, 1st of 10)

Yes, you’re reading that correctly, Frölunda have dropped but a single game in the first half of their title defense. The vibe around the team may have been dampened by the recency of their shutout loss to Färjestad, but the defending champions have put on an absolute clinic thus far. They’re led by the nigh unstoppable duo of Elisa Holopainen and Sofie Lundin, the former leading the league in goals and the latter teeing her up every step of the way. Past them, Frölunda has weapons up and down the lineup who can provide support at any given time, whether it’s Hanna Olsson, Andrea Dalen, or Edit Danielsson, just to name a few.

An elite forward core often comes at the cost of some shaky defensive zone play, but that isn’t the case here. Frölunda has allowed just 18 goals all season, nearly half that of their next closest competitor, and their deep blueline has only been reinforced with the recent return of Tuva Kandell from Northeastern. The goaltending is as good as it’s ever been despite the unexpected departure of Stephanie Neatby, as Brändli and Maja Helge make up the top two in both GAA and SV%. Frölunda is a truly complete team, and are deservedly the favourites to repeat as SDHL champions.

Player to Watch: Felizia Wikner-Zienkiewicz

After her goal-scoring numbers dropped in her second season with Frölunda, Wikner-Zienkiewicz is now back on par with her first, though she’s certainly doing it in an interesting fashion. She holds sole possession of the league lead in power play goals with five, but those make up all but one of her overall total. In addition, the six goals she’s netted have come on just 37 shots, good for a top ten shooting percentage league-wide. Will Wikner-Zienkiewicz, and Frölunda as a whole, be able to keep this up in the second half?