Sweden’s narrow victory shows that Leijonat and Tre Kronor were evenly matched, but the truth behind the result is different, writes Teemu Suvinen from Tampere.
15.5. 22:56
Tampere
Tre Kronor head coach Sam Hallam threatened MTV Urhailu before the match that he knew how to break down the Lions, who play an “unfortunate passing game”.
After Monday night’s draw, Hallam’s words sound like absurd platitudes, even though Sweden won on penalties.
It is even surprising that Hallam dared to make such a bold statement. Hallam’s Sweden looked surprisingly vulnerable at the Nokia Arena, especially towards the middle of the match.
Sweden’s victory suggests that Lijonat and Tre Kronor would have been evenly matched, but the truth behind the result is different. Legionnaires were the more dominant team for most of the match and created significantly more goalscoring chances than their opponents on pitches. This is useful and important information for continuity.
Trey Kroner tried to trouble the Lions by alternating between an offensive and a passive passing game, but the Lions’ defenders had no difficulty understanding it. Threatening Hallam to block the wing and suffocate the Lions’ play did not work at all.
The Lions – contrary to Hallam’s expectation – moved out of their zone with ease, either with quick starts or late ones.
With this in mind, Jukka Jalonen showed new coach Trey Kronor where the locker was.
Sweden has shaped its game closer to the way the Lions play, but it was clearly far behind, at least for now.
Certainly Sweden’s patience is to be admired. The Lions repeatedly drove into Sweden’s territory and could have created more chances if Tre Kronor’s patience had failed. This is where the Hallam imprint can be seen – Sweden no longer falters when defending idiosyncraticly under the coaching of Johan Garpenlov.
Overall the Lions’ performance was quite convincing, but inefficiency is definitely starting to bother the team.
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Sweden has shaped its game closer to the way the Lions play, but it was clearly far behind, at least for now.
For example, Mikko Rantanen has unexpectedly fumbled in fake spots, so that he almost certainly ended up in NHL Bowls. On the other hand, Kapo Caco’s goal scoring pain has also been transferred from the money bowl to the national team. Kasperi Kapanen is also looking for a reward for his entrepreneurial spirit and good moves.
Next, the Legion faces four lightweight opponents, so the team has plenty of time to gain confidence.
On the other hand, Trey Kronor’s Hallam still has something to prove after some tough conversations.
