November has just started but in the SDHL that means a two week break to allow for an international training camp. The women will return to the ice on 15th November, so we've got a chance to take a look at the action that has taken place over the last month here in Sweden.

Luleå/ MSSK have dominated the SDHL-era of club hockey since it's inception in 2016 raising the Swedish championship trophy three times in those four years playoffs. Behind them has usually been Linköping HC or MODO Hockey.

But now in the 12th year of Swedish women's elite hockey, with all the teams having played at least 13 matches, there are already signs of a power shift.

And so far, this season's team to beat are HV71 who after 16 matches have only lost twice. As one of those was an defeat in overtime, the club has still collected points in all but one of their games so that they lead the SDHL by 12 points over second placed, Brynäs IF.

It was third placed Djurgården IF, who were visiting the Kinnarps Arena, who have been the only team to beat the league leaders' in regulation.

HV71's winning streak is based on a classic formula - being stingy in defence and successful in front of net. The Jonköping club extended it's contract with their 2018/9 goalkeeper, Alba Gonzalo. Whilst the Spaniard does not have the league's highest save percentage, she has the lowest Goals Against Average letting in a painfully low 1.55 GAA when between the posts.

This summer saw a huge amount of transfers and HV71 signed four of the best players from last year's SDHL and made them their own. The result is yellow and blue players dominate the Total Points table with Kennedy Marchment (13G+13A), Hanna Olsson (9G+13A), Sidney Morin (6G+15A) and Kaitlyn Tougas (6G+13A) all in the top eight of scorers.

Therefore the Jonköping club has the highest scoring Swedish player in the league with Olsson and the highest scoring defender with Morin (pictured). The blueliner, who is a 2018 US Olympic Gold medalist, also has the top plus/ minus in the league with a staggering +24!

HV's dominance can been seen when you compare to their opponents. Whereas the league leaders have won 14 matches, Brynäs IF (in second) and AIK (in fourth) have only won 8 whilst Djurgården IF (in third) have won nine of their 15 matches. The season is far from over, but it is already smelling like gold in Kinnarps Arena.

For second placed Brynäs IF their position has a lot to do with their signing of Swiss Olympian, Lara Stalder. Like Morin and Marchment she has come from Linköping who are struggling this year. Stalder tops the Total Points and Goal scoring with 20G+11A clocking up a netbreaking 2.21 PPG average.

The 2019/20 season is already promising to be one of the the best in women's hockey history here in Sweden. The quality is improving year on year, something that can be seen in the fact that the top two scorers, Stalder and Marchment, were drafted in the NWHL and that at least eight CWHL players have joined the league this year in the fallout from the #forthegame movement.

Another encouraging sign in that the bottom two teams for the last few years, SDE and Gothenburg HC, who previously were there just to make up the numbers, have improved beyond recognition this year. Both teams have already won more matches this year that they won in the whole 2018/9 season. It means that every match SDHL is 60 minutes of hard fought and competitive hockey, the highest standard seen in Sweden in the 12 years of elite women's sport.

Today at 12 noon in Helsinki the draw for the knockout rounds of the Champions Hockey League took place.

And the chance of another Swedish winner in the competition have been heavily reduced as four of the five clubs from that nation have been drawn against each other in the playoffs. Only Luleå HF will face foreign opposition in the last 16 stage, but they will find that SC Bern, the home club of 2012 New York Rangers drafted Swede, Calle Andersson, are no push over if they want to advance.

Current champions, Frölunda Indians, will also have their work cut out against Färjestad BK, whilst Skellefteå AIK will face Djurgården IF in a re-run of last year's SHL quarterfinal match.

Whoever survives this clash will almost certainly face last year's CHL finalists, Red Bull Munich. They have been drawn against Yunost Minsk who are the first team from Belarus ever to make it to the playoffs. Munich should win with ease and my feeling is that they will beat which ever Swedish team they meet in the quarterfinals. That's because they will probably be more hungry for CHL glory than their SHL rivals.

If Munich win against Skellefteå or Djurgården they could well face another DEL club left in the tournament. That is because German team Adler Mannheim are in a favourable position as the strongest team in their quartet of playoff clubs. They will play Czech team Mountfield HK and then play the winner of Tappara Tampere verses EV Zug. If Mannheim played as they did in the group stages they should be capable of beating all three of these teams.

For more details check out the Champions Hockey League's own pages:

https://www.championshockeyleague.com/en/news/playoff-draw-in-the-books-the-road-to-the-final-starts-now

The group stages of the European competition are finally over and the knockout stages will begin on 12 November.

Swedish teams, Luleå HF, Färjestad BK, Djurgården IF, Skellefteå AIK and reigning CHL and SHL champions, Frölunda Indians all made through, whilst Swiss team EHC Biel-Bienne collected the most points only losing one game, away at Tappara Tampere of Finland.

Frölunda's Ryan Lasch again tops out the scoring table with 1G+14A, whilst HC Pilsen's former Färjestad player, Milan Gulas (above) leads the goals scored and with 8G+4A is just behind the American on Total Points.

And the predictions made by A Brit On Thin Ice in June when the draw was made for the Group stages of who would go through almost worked perfectly.

Perhaps the major surprise was the advancement of Belarus team, Yonust Minsk, as the first team from the country to make it out of the group stages. from Group D.

However, my tip for Silver medal this year, Finland's Kärpät Oulu, never made it out of their group of death. Even an overtime win at home to Skellefteå AIK proved not to be enough as SC Bern's win took them into second place knocking the Finns into third, despite the fact that the three teams all finished with 11 points.

Swedish teams have competed in all five CHL finals winning four times. And this year, on current form it might be German side Adler Mannheim or Swiss side EV Zug that can threaten the blue and gold dominance over the trophy. Both teams had strong group match phases and beat tough opposition at home (Djurgården IF and HC Pilsen respectively).

But don't count out a repeat of the first ever CHL final in 2014/5 which was, so far, the only all Swedish final.

October is already upon us and the SDHL teams have all played five or six games in the first few weeks of the 2019/20 season here in Sweden.

Since 2013/14 season five of the six finals have been won by either Luleå HF or Linköping HC. But as suggested in my pre-season preview, this supremacy could well come to an end this year. With last year’s finalist in 5^th and 8^th place respectively and neither team having a player in the top 20 on Total Points the shift in power is already tangible.

For Linköping the change has come as the squad has been stripped of all its best players without replacements of a similar calibre coming in. For example, as we start October the league’s top Goal and Total Points scorer is a former Linköping player Lara Stalder. The Swiss international and first European to be drafted in the NWHL has 8+3 in just 5 games with new club, Brynäs IF.

But for Luleå a more dramatic change has occurred. That is that the manager who created the dominant force that is Luleå/ MSSK women’s hockey team, Fredrik Glader, has left for MODO Hockey. Although it is only effective as of today, the news broke in the first week of the season as four years and three Swedish championships at Luleå comes to an end for Glader.

The team who are currently top of the table are HV71 who have dropped just two points in their six games so far. The Jönköping club having not lost in regulation with five wins and one Overtime loss at defending champions, Luleå. Their top two scorers are former Djurgården IF forward, Hanna Olsson (5+3) – on left in picture - and former Linköping and US Olympic Gold medallist defender, Sidney Morin (3+5).

Meanwhile in second place in the table is Stalder and Brynäs IF who are yet to lose a single match this season, although have only won three of them in regulation meaning they are 3 points behind the league leaders.

A final word must also be said about Stockholm’s SDE Hockey who have been saved in relegation in all five years they’ve been in the SDHL. Currently they are shocking the Swedish women’s hockey world by being in third place.

The team has a completely new look roster that included a number of players from last year’s CWHL champions Calgary Inferno. But it is two hitherto unknown mature international players from minor women’s hockey nations who are leading the scoring. 28-year-old Slovenian provider, Pia Pren has 1+6 whilst 30-year-old Dutch forward, Savine Wielenga has 3+3 and both sit comfortably in the top 10 on Total Points so far this year.

This squad is good enough to provide the upset of the year and I think that they have not just had a lucky run but are here to stay in the top part of the table.

The NHL starts this week, but here in Sweden most team’s have already managed to squeeze in six matches a piece since the start of the league on 14 September.

That Frölunda Indians are up in second place already is probably not a surprise to many. But above them, and with only one loss to their name, is an unexpected name - Rögle BK. They are the only team, apart from the Indians, who have four regulation wins so far this season.

The leaders remain undefeated away from home and have beaten Malmö Redhawks, Linköping HC and Örebro HK on the road. In fact, the only match they have only lost to newly promoted IK Oskarshamn.

Tipped by many, include A Brit On Thin Ice, to go back down to the HockeyAllsvenskan, the east coast club have had an excellent start in proving everyone wrong. They only lie four points behind the league leaders and are part of a handful of teams that have won three matches in regulation. Netminder, Tex WIlliamsson, had never played a SHL match until this season now leads the keepers’ table with a 95.5 SVS%. Another SHL newby is their 28-year-old American forward, Tyler Kellher. The former Milwaukee Admirals (AHL) player joins a familiar name at the top of the goal scoring table - 2002 Columbus Blue Jackets drafted Joakim Lindström (Skellefteå AIK). But alongside them also with 5 goals and 2001 St Louis Blues drafted, Sebastian Wännström now with Leksand IF.

Back at Rögle, Canadian defenseman, Kodie Curran, pictured, continues where he left off last year for the Ängelholm club. He is the league’s top scoring defenseman with 7 (2+5) putting him in sixth on overall points. But he has new signing Dennis Everberg (3+3) and American assistant captain, Taylor Matson (4+1) also contributing from the forwards.

For the Indians it is the regulars Rhett Rakhshani (4+5), Simon Hjälmarsson (4+3) and Ryan Lasch (3+4) who have netted to get their challenge of winning a second SHL title in a row off to a good start.

Meanwhile at the bottom of the table are four teams who have only one regulation win so far this season - HV71, Linköping, Brynäs IF and Växjö Lakers. But as the regular season in 52 matches long there’s no need to panic yet. Both Linköping and Brynäs will play on 1 October so have an early chance to creep up the table before the first full month of SHL action gets going.

Here’s my “one liners” about the team’s I believe will finish in 3-10 in the SDHL in March 2020.

Djurgården IF – one of the more stable teams with a similar roster to last year. If their NCAA products can settle in they will be a force to reckon with. And any team with Canadian multi gold medallist, Jennifer Wakefield should not be discounted as she is a highly talented game changer.

MODO Hockey – the club has lost two of the league’s best forwards but retain the excellent Klara Peslarova in net and talented French internationals, Marion Allemoz (above) and Lore Baudrit. They also have the addition of one of the best forwards to come to the Sweden from the CWHL, Montréal Canadiennes, Katia Clement-Heydra.

SDE – This could be the surprise success of the year. It all will come down to how their influx of North American players gel with each other and how they react to a new environment and league.

Linköping HC – Will struggle in comparison to the last few years where they have been the second-best team in the league. They have lost their strongest players, but Pernilla Winberg and Emilia Rambolt remain and the American Hickel sisters from Calgary Inferno will play an important role.

AIK – a good team but has made no significant changes since last year to improve the squad.

Leksand IF – the team has essentially lost all it’s top players over the summer. The one ray of light is that they have Canadian Emma Woods coming in – one of the top 30 points scorers in the CWHL and drafted in 2017 in both the CWHL and NWHL. Will have nothing to fear in any playoff match with Division 1 opponents.

Göteborg HC – the weakest team last year and not made significant changes over the summer.

It’s that time of year to stick my neck out and predict the end of year table for the SDHL. Last year I correctly guessed Luleå HF as champions, but this year I think it will be a more closely run fight. You can read my reviews this week of the top three teams - HV71, Brynäs IF and Luleå HF and I will shortly post my one liner about each team:

1. HV71
2. Luleå HF
3. Brynäs IF
4. Djurgården IF
5. MODO Hockey
6. SDE
7. Linköping HC
8. AIK
9. Leksand IF
10. Gothenburg HC

HV71

The Jönköping club has also raided their SDHL rivals’ rosters with Leksand IF and Linköping HC losing out the most.

Swedish Olympian and international forward, Anna Borgqvist leaves Leksand along with former Calgary Inferno player, Danielle Stone.

Not satisfied with that, HV71 has taken three players from neighbouring Linköping – Swedish international defender, Anna Kjellbin is one. But they have also poached the club’s top scorer, 2018 Buffalo Beauts drafted, Kennedy Marchment (above) and the league’s best defender, US Olympic gold medallist, Sidney Morin.

As if that was not enough, they have also snapped up free agent, Hanna Olsson. Last year, the young Swedish international fell out with her former club, Djurgården IF, leaving them before the playoffs and bitterly fulfilling her contractual obligations to not play for another SDHL club for the remainder of the season.

But that is not all. MODO Hockey’s 2016 CWHL drafted Canadian forward, Kaitlyn Tougas and one of the SDHL top scorers has been also been drawn to the Jönköping club.

In total the club will now eight of the top 22 scorers from the 2018/9 season on their roster this year, more than any other club in the league.

That strength in depth is partly why HV71 are my favourites to win the SDHL.

Luleå HF

The summer transfer season has been very quiet for the Norrbotten club – and why should the team that has won the SDHL three times in the last four years change anything?

They already have Sweden’s national netminder, Sara Grahn and Sweden’s top scoring forward from 2018/9, Emma Nordin in their squad. Plus they have five of the Finnish international team who are based in Luleå. Finland are the third best team in the world that beat Canada in the 2019 World Championship and were only a controversially disallowed goal from winning the final against the USA. Defender and team captain, Jenni Hiirikoski and forward, Michelle Karvinen are two of the best players in the world in their positions and have Finnish teammates Ronja Savolainen (D), Noora Tulus (F) and Petra Nieminen (F) for company.

Their only new signing is Danish international, Nicoline Söndergaard Jensen, yet another big loss for Linköping HC. (Photo shows Karvinen on the left celebrating with Söndergaard Jensen on right).

But such is the talent of Brynäs and HV71, that although this is still an outstanding team, I think that it will not be a third win in a row for Luleå in 2019/20.

Brynäs IF

What they tried to do last year in bringing Jennifer Wakefield, Erika Grahm and Georgina Farman into the club, they have now done in full on technicolour – even if Wakefield has got the elbow in the process.

Farman’s former teammates at Linköping HC will join her in Gävle, defender, Emma Muren and star forward, Lara Stalder. Stalder (above) is the Swiss international who was the first European to be drafted in NWHL. When she is not injured, she one of the most effective players in the SDHL in front of goal.

Not satisfied with that, they have also taken player’s from Grahm’s former club, MODO Hockey. That includes last year’s top scorer, former Toronto Furies, Michela Cava as well as aggressive defender and Swedish Olympian, Johanna Olofsson. Expect Cava and Stalder to be in the top 10 on points by March 2020 and Brynäs to be in the fight for gold.