Joonas Nättinen, JYP
For the third time in the playoffs, JYP blew a 2-0 lead, this time in Liiga’s bronze-medal game against Kärpät (with Sebastian Aho and Jesse Puljujärvi). Nättinen got an assist in that last game of the season.
While it must have been disappointing to lose the last game of the year, the season must be considered a success for Nättinen. He has captained his team to fourth place in the league and into the playoffs. Before the season, JYP was expected to finish sixth to seventh. He also made his debut in the Leijonat (national team), and has provided some offence to go with his leadership.
| Games | Goals | Assists | Points |
| 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Lukas Vejdemo, Djurgården
Vejdemo is on summer holiday. The next time we see him on ice will most likely be during the development camp in Brossard.
Magnus Nygren, Färjestad
When the first cuts from the Swedish national team were made, Nygren was still on the squad, as was expected. The expectations are that he will be part of the final roster in Russia.
He played two games this week, both against Germany, though without registering any points. Sweden won one game 3-1 and lost the other in a shootout after a 2-2 draw. Next up are two games against Russia a week from now.
| Games | Goals | Assists | Points |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Artturi Lehkonen, Frölunda
The performance in the SHL playoffs, all the way through to the first three games of the finals, should make waves across the ocean. Lehkonen has been one of Frölunda’s best players in the post-season, together with Oscar Fantenberg and Johan Sundström. He is currently on top of the standings in both points and goals. Even though he has assured me that he wants to win the Le Mat Trophy more than anything else, I am sure a win in either or both competitions will be something to cherish if it happens.
Again, while Lehkonen has been good this season, he really has upped his game in the playoffs; something that Roger Rönnberg has noticed, and has now switched up the power-play formations. It’s not always the first power-play line, that has been together most of the season that automatically gets the first shift, as Lehkonen’s line is often sent over the boards to start things off in recent games.
Lehkonen played on Tuesday night. You can check out the recap of Game Three for a report on that game and highlights of Lehkonen’s standout performance.
| Games | Goals | Assists | Points |
| 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Martin Réway, Fribourg–Gottéron
Réway played with Slovakia in two games against Russia: a 6-0 loss and a 1-1 draw that Slovakia lost on penalties. He was centring the first line, with Vladimir Dravecky and Andrej Stastny in game one, and Dravecky and Marek Bartánus in game two, while also started the power plays. Réway missed on his chance to take the penalties into extra rounds, but he recorded an assist on Slovakia’s lone goal:
@Zeb_Habs Here’s the Reway assist in case you still need it… pic.twitter.com/udhZ3kTClM
— Alex Nunn (@aj_ranger) April 16, 2016
| Games | Goals | Assists | Points |
| 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
It will be good to see Réway in a prominent role during the World Championship with a coach, Zdeno Ciger, that seems to believe in him. Depending on which players Slovakia can get add from the NHL, he might get a second-line position when the tournament begins. No matter where he plays, Assistant Captain Réway will still be an integral part of the Slovakian team’s bid for success.
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Thanks to Alex Nunn (@aj_ranger at our sister blog BlueShirtBanter) for the help with Réway’s assist. I was busy with making a gif of Lehkonen’s latest goal at the time….
