There was a tension in the air before what was to come in Skellefteå.
The crowd flocked to the arena to see the icon Jimmie Eriksson honored with a shirt hoist, as the first player ever at the club.
Eriksson was moved when he turned to the audience and thanked them for all the support over the years.
- It is with great joy and pride that I stand here today, he said in his speech.
Eriksson played his first season for Skellefteå in 2002 and ended 2019 with his last game.
During his time at the club, he was team captain for several years and won two SM golds.
He has also won WC gold with Sweden in 2013 and Olympic silver in 2014.
Weak start to the season
Once the match started, everything went against Skellefteå initially.
2-0 deficit after fifteen minutes of play and several unsuccessful numerical superiority.
From the Malmö side, it is believed that the team was attracted by the tributes to Jimmie Eriksson.
- We have to thank Jimmie who thought we would be extra nervous here.
But it just gave us more energy, says Emil Sylvegård.
But even the home players then got going.
Before the first period was over, the game was tied.
The middle period was then goalless before Malmö took the driver's seat again and scored three goals in the final period.
- We don't play a good match and concede three of the goals.
I had hoped for a better performance, we need to improve, says Skellefteå's coach Robert Ohlsson.