Preseason is in the books. Tonight, HockeyAllsvenskan begins for real as newcomers Visby/Roma visit Be-Ge – and for the Gotland club, it will also be their first-ever game in Sweden’s second tier. Manuel Ågren is out, but Olle Karlsson could make his first appearance in an IK jersey. We want to see whether Calle Karlsson can carry his preseason dominance into competitive hockey, and whether Joel Svensson’s upward trajectory continues. The choice in goal remains open.
Emil Vuorio feels like the natural pick after the way he finished last season and performed in preseason, but it would also be a serious first test for Axel Nyman. And Danny Dzhaniyev? We hope he kicks off the flip-flops and does a David Rodman. The former Dead Hollow Carver was no preseason king in Oskarshamn – then the league started and a completely different player appeared. Something along those lines. On the other side are cult favourite Joakim Thelin and former Dead Hollow Carver Karl Johansson.
John “Willys” Dahlström will miss the game through injury and will have to make do with watching from the stands. It should also be quite a party. IK themselves are talking about a sold-out or well-filled Be-Ge, while the unusual 20.00 start time suits the ferry schedule from Gotland. If the away end fills up and the Oskarshamn crowd have had time for a few drinks before pulling on their vests, it could be a pretty powerful first league night for all the new IK players – perhaps especially the Americans, who did not grow up with Swedish supporter culture.
And yes: somewhere, someone will surely call it the Gotland Ferry Derby. Swedish hockey already has E4 derbies and Småland derbies, so why should derby inflation stop there? A real derby is still something else. Puck drop at 20.00. Now the points start counting.