Skellefteå was under a lot of pressure against table jumbo Modo on Tuesday evening.

In the third period, Jesper Olofsson equalized for the team from Örnsköldsvik on a penalty and took the match to extra time.

Nasty scenes then unfolded on the ice.

Skellefteå’s back cog Jonathan Pudas got the puck straight in the face. The 31-year-old started bleeding profusely and went straight to the dressing room. He left a long trail of blood behind him.

When the ice had been scraped clean, Skellefteå was able to decide through Martins Dzierkals who scored 4–3 and the Västerbottoms took care of the extra point.

– It feels good. I don’t remember the last time I scored in overtime, he says in TV4.

Released from main tackle

It was the firecrackers that were the topic of conversation in the evening match. Earlier in the match, Sam Vigneault made a tackle on Arvid Lundberg’s head and the referees initially ruled a five-minute expulsion.

But after video review, the Modo player was completely exonerated.

– Then we see that when the tackle takes place, Sam holds everything down, does not push any force upwards and is quite low. Then Arvid moves a little before “impact” and then we judge that there is no expulsion, says referee Tobias Björk and explains that the tackle to the head does not automatically mean an expulsion.

Skellefteå’s coach Andreas Falk was not satisfied.

– I think it’s pretty clear that it’s taking over. He is in a vulnerable situation and has dropped the puck. If you’re going to hit, you’re going to hit the shoulder, but he hits the head. All of a sudden it’s okay, even though we’ve received directives that it’s not okay. I would have liked to see a fifth and possibly a second, but to remove it completely I want a better explanation, he says.

Skellefteå is seventh in the table. Modo is still jumbo.