2012–13 Elitserien season

2012–13 Elitserien season
League Sweden Elitserien
Sport Ice hockey
Duration 13 September 2012 – 18 April 2013
Number of games 55 (330 total)
Number of teams 12
Total attendance 1,883,192[1]
Average attendance 5,707[1]
Regular season
League Champion Skellefteå AIK
Season MVP Jimmie Ericsson (Skellefteå)
Top scorer Bud Holloway (Skellefteå)
Playoffs
Playoffs MVP Oscar Lindberg (Skellefteå)
Finals
Champions Skellefteå AIK (2nd title)
  Runners-up Luleå HF

The 2012–13 Elitserien season was the 38th season of Elitserien. The regular season began on 13 September 2012 and ended on 5 March 2013.[2] The playoffs began on 12 March 2013 and ended on 18 April 2013. The 2012–13 Elitserien season was the last season under the name "Elitserien"; on 17 June 2013, the league was renamed "Swedish Hockey League" (SHL).[3]

Skellefteå AIK clinched the Swedish Championship for the first time since 1978, defeating Luleå HF 4–0 in the Finals. It was the team's second Swedish Championship in club history. Skellefteå also won the regular season for the first time since the 1980–81 season, and the second time in club history. Their 114-point finish is the highest amount of points since Färjestad BK won the 2001–02 regular season with 118 points. Luleå HF improved on the record for fewest goals surrendered in a 55-game regular season that they set last season by only having 102 goals scored against them.

In Kvalserien, Örebro HK (first SHL season) and Leksands IF qualified for the 2013–14 SHL season at the expense of Timrå IK and Rögle BK.

Participating teams

Team City Arena Capacity
AIK Stockholm Hovet 8,094
Brynäs IF Gävle Läkerol Arena 8,585
Frölunda HC Gothenburg Scandinavium 12,044
Färjestad BK Karlstad Löfbergs Lila Arena 8,647
HV71 Jönköping Kinnarps Arena 7,000
Linköpings HC Linköping Cloetta Center 8,500
Luleå HF Luleå Coop Norrbotten Arena 6,300
Modo Hockey Örnsköldsvik Fjällräven Center 7,600
Rögle BK Ängelholm Lindab Arena 5,150
Skellefteå AIK Skellefteå Skellefteå Kraft Arena 6,001
Timrå IK Timrå E.ON Arena 6,000
Växjö Lakers Växjö Vida Arena 5,700

Summary

Short-term contracts

Short-term contracts and the possibility of signing players affected by the 2012–13 NHL lockout was a controversial issue for several months. The board of hockey operations for Elitserien (Hockeyligan) decided to continue rejecting short-term contracts (i.e. contracts not lasting for the entire season) on 23 August 2012.[4] On 21 September 2012, the Swedish Competition Authority (SCA) examined the matter and responded with a ruling that allowed short-term contracts.[5] Hockeyligan appealed the SCA ruling to the Market Court. On 18 December 2012, the Market Court ruled against the SCA and allowed Hockeyligan to forbid short-term contracts.[6] The uncertainty and concerns of legal punishment caused a number of Elitserien clubs to refrain from signing short-term contracts and await the Market Court's decision. In the end, Cody Franson played 26 Elitserien games with Brynäs, Alexander Steen played 20 games with Modo, and Matt Duchene played 19 games and Viktor Stålberg 11 games with Frölunda before their short-term contracts expired.

Outdoor game

For the fourth consecutive season, an outdoor game was played. As part of Brynäs IF celebrating their 100th year as a club, they hosted Timrå IK on December 8, 2012, in a temporary arena called Gävlebocken ("Gävle Goat") Arena. Brynäs won the game 3–0 in front of 15,009 spectators.[7][8]

Decline in attendance

The average attendance in Elitserien fell by 10.5% from 6,385 to 5,717 spectators per game, the lowest average since the 2002–03 season. The drop meant that Elitserien was fifth in average attendance among professional ice hockey leagues (fourth in Europe) – after the NHL, NLA, DEL and KHL.[9][10] In the 2011–12 season, Elitserien had the second highest average attendance among professional hockey leagues (first in Europe).[11]

There were several reasons for the decline; Frölunda HC saw an 18.1% decrease to an average of 8,588 fans per game. The second most attended team last season, Djurgårdens IF, was relegated to HockeyAllsvenskan. Nine of the eleven returning teams from last season had lower attendance numbers, with Skellefteå AIK and Luleå HF being the only teams to increase their average attendance. HockeyAllsvenskan, on the other hand, improved its attendance average this season from 2,606 to 3,227 spectators per game, an improvement of 23.8% from the 2011–12 season.

Regular season

Standings

2012–13 Elitserien season GP W L OTW OTL GF GA +/– Pts
Skellefteå AIKy 55 34 13 4 4 170 107 63 114
Färjestad BKx 55 27 14 7 7 155 110 45 102
Luleå HFx 55 25 12 9 9 145 102 43 102
HV71x 55 27 16 9 3 155 124 31 102
Linköpings HCx 55 27 19 4 5 145 136 9 94
Frölunda HCx 55 21 21 8 5 123 126 –3 84
Modo Hockeyx 55 19 19 7 10 135 129 6 81
Brynäs IFx 55 17 20 6 12 123 166 –43 75
0
AIKe 55 16 25 7 7 123 149 –26 69
Växjö Lakers HCe 55 14 26 7 8 102 130 –28 64
0
Timrå IKr 55 12 30 8 5 100 127 –27 57
Rögle BKr 55 10 34 5 6 104 174 –70 46


x – clinched playoff spot; y – clinched regular season league title; e – eliminated from playoff contention; r – play in relegation series

Statistics

Scoring leaders

Updated as of the end of the regular season.[12]
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalty Minutes

Player Team GP G A Pts +/– PIM
Canada Bud Holloway Skellefteå AIK 55 20 51 71 +25 36
Sweden Carl Söderberg Linköpings HC 54 31 29 60 +18 48
Sweden Joakim Lindström Skellefteå AIK 53 18 36 54 +11 56
Sweden Pär Arlbrandt Linköpings HC 54 21 32 53 +25 28
United States Broc Little AIK 55 16 30 46 –3 24
Canada Jason Krog HV71 55 17 26 43 +16 18
Sweden Simon Hjalmarsson Linköpings HC 55 12 31 43 +21 10
Sweden Oscar Lindberg Skellefteå AIK 55 17 25 42 +1 54
Sweden Calle Järnkrok Brynäs IF 53 13 29 42 –2 12
Canada Chris Lee Färjestad BK 54 12 29 41 +20 30

Leading goaltenders

These are the leaders in GAA among goaltenders who have played at least 40% of the team's minutes. Updated as of the end of the regular season.[13]

GP = Games Played; TOI = Time On Ice (minutes); GA = Goals Against; SO = Shutouts; Sv% = Save Percentage; GAA = Goals Against Average

Player Team GP TOI GA SO Sv% GAA
Czech Republic Alexander Salák Färjestad BK 41 2452:44 66 7 .939 1.61
Sweden Joacim Eriksson Skellefteå AIK 30 1726:17 48 5 .931 1.67
Sweden Johan Gustafsson Luleå HF 33 2016:10 57 4 .933 1.70
Sweden Christian Engstrand Linköpings HC 34 1934:05 61 6 .936 1.89
Slovakia Július Hudáček Frölunda HC 48 2894:00 91 5 .930 1.89
Sweden Joakim Lundström Timrå IK 25 1506:57 50 2 .927 1.99
Sweden Gustaf Wesslau HV71 43 2522:35 84 7 .928 2.00
Sweden Markus Svensson Skellefteå AIK 27 1587:22 54 3 .920 2.04
Austria Bernhard Starkbaum Modo Hockey 46 2625:43 90 8 .933 2.06
Finland Fredrik Norrena Växjö Lakers 46 2725:19 95 6 .919 2.09

Regular season attendance

[1]

Rk Team Home Away Total
GP Total Average GP Total Average GP Total Average
1 Frölunda HC 27 231,860 8,588 28 155,188 5,542 55 387,058 7,037
2 HV71 27 182,788 6,770 28 163,771 5,849 55 346,559 6,301
3 Linköpings HC 28 176,030 6,287 27 144,084 5,336 55 320,114 5,820
4 Brynäs IF 28 174,419 6,229 27 166,064 6,151 55 340,483 6,191
5 Färjestad BK 27 167,633 6,209 28 158,586 5,664 55 326,219 5,931
6 MODO 27 158,880 5,884 28 169,388 6,050 55 328,268 5,969
7 Skellefteå AIK 28 145,528 5,197 27 155,173 5,747 55 300,701 5,467
8 Luleå HF 27 139,969 5,184 28 158,814 5,672 55 298,783 5,432
9 Växjö Lakers HC 28 141,182 5,042 27 144,426 5,349 55 285,608 5,193
10 AIK 27 134,951 4,998 28 157,179 5,614 55 292,130 5,311
11 Timrå IK 28 121,137 4,326 27 162,826 6,031 55 283,963 5,163
12 Rögle BK 28 108,805 3,886 27 147,693 5,470 55 256,498 4,664
League 330 1,883,192 5,707

Playoffs

Playoff bracket

In the first round, the highest remaining seed chose which of the four lowest remaining seeds to be matched against. In the second round, the highest remaining seed is matched against the lowest remaining seed. In each round the higher-seeded team is awarded home ice advantage. Each best-of-seven series follows an alternating home team format: the higher-seeded team will play at home for games 1 and 3 (plus 5 and 7 if necessary), and the lower-seeded team will be at home for game 2, 4 and 6 (if necessary).

  Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
                           
  1 Skellefteå AIK 4  
8 Brynäs IF 0  
  1 Skellefteå AIK 4  
  5 Linköpings HC 1  
2 Färjestad BK 4
  7 Modo Hockey 1  
(Pairings are re-seeded after the first round)   1 Skellefteå AIK 4
  3 Luleå HF 0
  3 Luleå HF 4  
6 Frölunda HC 2  
  2 Färjestad BK 1
  3 Luleå HF 4  
4 HV71 1
  5 Linköpings HC 4  

Quarterfinals

(1) Skellefteå AIK vs. (8) Brynäs IF

Skellefteå AIK won series 4–0

(2) Färjestad BK vs. (7) Modo Hockey

Färjestad BK won series 4–1

(3) Luleå HF vs. (6) Frölunda HC

Luleå HF won series 4–2

(4) HV71 vs. (5) Linköpings HC

Linköpings HC won series 4–1

Semifinals

(1) Skellefteå AIK vs. (5) Linköpings HC

Skellefteå won the series 4–1 and advanced to the Finals for the third year in a row, becoming the first team to achieve this feat since HV71 between 2008–2010.

Skellefteå AIK won series 4–1

(2) Färjestad BK vs. (3) Luleå HF

Luleå won the series 4–1 and advanced to the Finals for the first time since winning the Swedish Championship in 1996. Linus Persson's game-deciding goal in Game 4, 12 seconds into overtime, is a new record for the fastest overtime goal scored in Elitserien playoff history.[14]

Luleå HF won series 4–1

Finals: (1) Skellefteå AIK vs. (3) Luleå HF

Skellefteå AIK - Luleå HF Finals 2013, Game 1

The Finals became a matchup between the league's two northernmost teams: Skellefteå and Luleå. Skellefteå won three of the five regular-season games against Luleå; two of the five games had to be decided in a shootout. This was only the second playoff series between these two teams; in 2011, Skellefteå defeated Luleå in six games to advance to the Finals (where they eventually lost). This was Skellefteå's third consecutive Finals appearance (Skellefteå reached the Finals in 2011 and 2012), and their fourth overall excluding seasons before Elitserien was formed. Luleå made their first Finals appearance since losing the Swedish Championship to Färjestad three games to one in 1997, as well as their third appearance overall (Luleå became Swedish Champions in 1996).

Skellefteå won the series 4–0, and became Swedish champions for the first time since 1978, and only the second time in club history. Luleå became the first team since 2003 to get swept in the Finals, in four straight games. Skellefteå finished the playoffs with a 12–1 record, the best playoff record since Färjestad's playoff run in 2009.

In Game 4, Skellefteå clinched the Swedish Championship with a 4–0 shutout over Luleå. Goaltender Joacim Eriksson stopped all 32 shots against Skellefteå's crease. After the first period, Skellefteå was up 2–0, following goals by Oscar Möller at 3:33 and Erik Forssell at 15:22. 5:32 into the second period, Johan Forsberg netted his first goal of the playoffs to give Skellefteå a three-goal lead. With less than four minutes to go in the third period, Erik Forssell sealed the Swedish Championship for Skellefteå with an empty netter, his second goal of the game.

Skellefteå AIK won series 4–0

Statistics

Scoring leaders

Updated as of the end of the playoffs.[15]
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalty Minutes

Player Team GP G A Pts +/– PIM
Sweden Linus Persson Luleå HF 15 8 4 12 +4 6
Sweden Pär Arlbrandt Linköpings HC 10 7 5 12 +6 4
Canada Chris Lee Färjestad BK 10 7 5 12 +5 6
Sweden Oscar Lindberg Skellefteå AIK 13 4 8 12 +13 16
Sweden Linus Klasen Luleå HF 14 4 8 12 –4 4
Sweden Simon Hjalmarsson Linköpings HC 10 5 6 11 +5 8
Sweden Joakim Lindström Skellefteå AIK 13 4 7 11 +3 4
Sweden Niklas Olausson Luleå HF 15 1 10 11 +2 4
Sweden Erik Forssell Skellefteå AIK 13 5 5 10 +6 2
Sweden Oscar Möller Skellefteå AIK 13 5 5 10 +4 2

Leading goaltenders

These are the leaders in GAA and save percentage among goaltenders who played at least 40% of the team's minutes. The table is sorted by GAA, and the criteria for inclusion are bolded. Updated as of the end of the playoffs.[16]

GP = Games Played; TOI = Time On Ice (minutes); GA = Goals Against; SO = Shutouts; Sv% = Save Percentage; GAA = Goals Against Average

Player Team GP TOI GA SO Sv% GAA
Sweden Joacim Eriksson Skellefteå AIK 10 623:01 11 3 .952 1.06
Sweden Linus Ullmark Modo Hockey 2 122:49 3 0 .955 1.47
Sweden Johan Gustafsson Luleå HF 15 946:10 32 0 .925 2.03
Slovakia Július Hudáček Frölunda HC 6 388:29 15 1 .920 2.32
Czech Republic Alexander Salák Färjestad BK 10 616:06 24 1 .922 2.34

Elitserien awards

Guldhjälmen: Bud Holloway, Skellefteå AIK
Guldpucken: Jimmie Ericsson, Skellefteå AIK
Honken Trophy: Gustaf Wesslau, HV71
Håkan Loob Trophy: Carl Söderberg, Linköpings HC
Rookie of the Year: William Karlsson, HV71
Salming Trophy: Magnus Nygren, Färjestad BK
Stefan Liv Memorial Trophy: Oscar Lindberg, Skellefteå AIK
Guldpipan: Ulf Rönnmark

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Svenska Ishockeyförbundet: Elitserien: 2012–13: Elitserien: Team Statistics: Attendance. Retrieved 11 July 2013.
  2. ↑ "2012–13 Elitserien schedule" (PDF). hockeyligan.se. 2012-05-01. Retrieved 2012-05-18.
  3. ↑ Hemming, Johanna (2013-06-17). "Elitserien och Svenska Hockeyligan blir SHL". Svenska Hockeyligan (in Swedish). Retrieved 2013-06-17.
  4. ↑ "Svenska Hockeyligan enade i NHL-frågan" (in Swedish). hockeyligan.se. 2012-08-23.
  5. ↑ "Frågor och svar om Konkurrensverkets beslut om Svenska Hockeyligans möjligheter att utesluta NHL-spelare" (in Swedish). Konkurrensverket. 2012-09-21.
  6. ↑ Karlsson, Erik (2012-12-18). "Marknadsdomstolen ger Hockeyligan rätt". Aftonbladet (in Swedish). Retrieved 2013-01-13.
  7. ↑ Johan Wennerström (2012-12-08). "Resultat: Brynäs gick segrande ur utematchen" (in Swedish). Hockeyligan.
  8. ↑ Joachim Sandström (2012-12-08). "15004 såg Brynäs vinna med 3-0". Timrå IK (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 2012-12-26.
  9. ↑ "Swiss on top of Europe". International Ice Hockey Federation. 2013-03-13. Archived from the original on 2013-03-16. Retrieved 2013-03-13.
  10. ↑ Bodin, Uffe (2013-03-13). "Det svenska publikraset". Hockeysverige (in Swedish). Retrieved 2013-03-13.
  11. ↑ "SC Bern 10th time on top". International Ice Hockey Federation. 2012-03-15. Archived from the original on March 18, 2012. Retrieved 2012-03-17.
  12. ↑ "Statistik". Hockeyligan. Archived from the original on 2013-07-31.
  13. ↑ "Statistik". Hockeyligan. Archived from the original on 2013-05-17.
  14. ↑ Sunnervik, Linus (2013-04-04). "Lika bra att åka ner och avgöra det här". Expressen (in Swedish). Retrieved 2013-04-05.
  15. ↑ "Statistik". Hockeyligan.
  16. ↑ "Statistik - Swedish Ice Hockey Association". Swedish Ice Hockey Association.

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