Six goals conceded in Mora two weeks ago. A lead surrendered in Örnsköldsvik on Wednesday. Friday night at BEGE is about responding on the ice – not finding another explanation afterwards.
IK have shown what they can do at home. The last two home games ended in an 8–2 win over Almtuna and a 5–3 victory against Kalmar. This team has pace, skill and goals in it. Against Mora, we also want to see defensive play that holds together for a full evening.
More secure at the back – without slowing down
Emil Vuorio made several excellent saves in Örnsköldsvik. Even so, IK came away with only one point after losing 4–3 in overtime. Our main criticism was not the goaltending. It was how often IK accepted MoDo's pace and eventually started protecting their lead far too early.
That cannot become the story again. Better defence does not mean five skaters retreating and hoping for the next save. We want better decisions, clearer support and a team that stays connected when possession changes hands.
The defencemen need to get the first pass working, help each other under pressure and be more precise with their coverage around the net. Their decisions at the attacking blue line need to improve too. Keeping an attack alive is good. Stepping up without cover and leaving an open road the other way is not.
The forwards must also give the defencemen options. No breakout pass becomes easy when everyone ahead is waiting for somebody else to solve the problem. The absence of Alexander Younan and Anton Malmström was noticeable last time, but the players involved now need to make the system work together. We want calmer decisions – not a slower game.
Respect Mora, but do not let them dictate the game
Mora's 6–2 win over IK on 9 October is reason enough to take this seriously. On Wednesday, they followed it with a 6–0 home win against Almtuna. They have shown they can do serious damage when a game develops on their terms.
That latest big win came in front of 1,102 spectators. Mora have managed to play well at home without a huge wall of noise behind them. Now, though, they are on the road in Oskarshamn. A Friday night at BEGE should be a different challenge.
Our reading of the underlying numbers is that IK and Mora are relatively close, rather than the 6–2 score telling the whole story of their respective strengths. That makes demanding a response reasonable, but it does not make victory automatic. We have to win the battles on the ice, not the comparison on paper.
Mora should face an IK team that raises the pace when the opportunity is there and uses its skill. Not a team that allows the visitors to set both the tempo and the terms.
Brown – show us again
In our view, Matt Brown was very quiet against MoDo. We want him to make his presence felt again: seek the puck, take opponents on and become a threat, rather than disappear from the game for long stretches.
It would be a message to us as well. We have seen enough to believe Brown can be a very good player for IK. Now we want to see that his strong performances were not isolated peaks, but evidence of a level he can return to and deliver more often.
We also understand that his surroundings matter. He has not had the same players to combine with all the time. Chemistry, passing options and the players creating space influence how much an attacking player can get out of his game. That belongs in the assessment – without becoming a free pass for an anonymous evening.
We are not asking Brown to carry IK on his own. We want him to show he is one of the players who can make a difference.
Go for IK – not for Mora
The defeat in Örnsköldsvik is hardly likely to sell extra tickets. Mora are not the sort of opponents who fill the arena for us either. That is precisely why the message needs to be simple: go for IK.
At times, it feels as though this team's potential receives more backing from us supporters than the club's own signals suggest. That is something of a reversal of how the last few years have felt. The supporters and the club still seem not quite in step.
That is our impression, not a claim about what anyone inside the club privately believes. But the team on the ice should not have to wait for everyone to strike the same note. If we believe in the homegrown players, the skill and the possibilities in this squad, it needs to be heard in the stands too.
We can demand more and support the team at the same time. In fact, we should do both. Not just turn up when the opposition sells the occasion or everything is already working.
At least two points
This is not a game in which we want to settle for IK staying competitive for a long time or creating enough chances that they could have won. At home to Mora, on a Friday, with this team, the demand should be a win.
Three points are the aim. Two is the minimum we are prepared to accept.
Better defensive play. More influence from Brown. An IK side playing its own hockey – and a BEGE crowd doing its part.
The response has to come on the ice. The support starts in the stands.
Game: IK Oskarshamn–Mora IK, Friday 23 October 2026, 19:00 Swedish local time, Be-Ge Hockey Center.
GLID INTE supporter analysis. Assessments of the play, the club and crowd interest are our own. The comparison of underlying play is qualitative; no exact model values are stated. This article does not confirm the starting goalie, defensive pairings or forward lines.