Malmö beat Djurgården 2-1 in the second game of their SHL playoff eighth-final series, evening the matchup at 1-1. William von Barnekow scored the late winner amid controversy over a possible offside, while Djurgården's Jacob Josefson equalized earlier in the third period. A third and decisive game is set for Saturday in Malmö.
In a tense SHL åttondelsfinal match at Malmö arena before 9,104 fans, Malmö secured a 2-1 victory over Djurgården, forcing a series-deciding third game on Saturday. Filip Björkman gave Malmö the lead at 2:28 after a weak Djurgården change. Fredrik Händemark appeared to make it 2-0 at 10:35, but the goal was disallowed on video review for goalie interference, a decision Malmö coach Tomas Kollar called 'uppenbart' correct, noting a player disturbed the goalkeeper in the crease blue paint area. Kollar praised the referees, saying they did a 'bra jobb' and handled the situation right, contrasting Djurgården's controversial overtime winner in game one, which was later deemed invalid by referee chief Tomas Thorsbrink but stood at the time. Djurgården equalized at 1-1 in the third period at 9:01 when Jacob Josefson tackled for the puck, received a pass from David Blomgren, and scored. Josefson admitted shouting 'offside' from the bench before Malmö's winner by local hero William von Barnekow at 4:40 remaining, claiming a Malmö player was offside beforehand, though he deferred to the officials: 'Domarna dömer.' Djurgården goalie Magnus Hellberg, returning after illness that sidelined him for game one, stopped 24 of 26 shots (92.31% save percentage). Hellberg called von Barnekow's goal a 'slumpmål,' possibly deflected off a stick, not screened: 'Nej, det var inte skymning.' Djurgården coach Robert Kimby noted defensive lapses allowed too many chances despite high-quality opportunities created, while forward Josefson said the team must improve overall for Saturday: 'Kommer vi bara upp till vår normala nivå tror jag vi har en bra chans.' Player ratings from Hockeynews highlighted strong showings from Philip Holm, Colby Sissons, Viggo Björck, David Blomgren, and Josefson (all 8 stars), with Hellberg at 7.
