Sweden grinds down Finland, 4-1
By Risto Pakarinen |
08 NOV 2026
photo: © International Ice Hockey Federation / Tim Austen
Sweden’s strong start saves the day as they protect an early lead and take an important 4-1 preliminary round win over Finland.
Hilda Svensson, Ida Karlsson, Sara Hjalmarsson and Tilde Grillfors scored for Sweden, Ebba Svensson Traff made 26 saves for Sweden. Petra Nieminen scored for Finland and Sanni Ahola in the Finnish goal stopped the puck 28 times.
"We started really well, dipped in the second period, and then came back to our own level in the third. We have a lot of great skaters on our team so we wanted to get the puck deep and work from there," said Sweden's Mira Jungaker.
"We're trying to put ourselves in a good position for the playoff round and we knew that the game against Finland would be a huge part of that," she added.
Sweden forechecked hard early on, and the Finnish defense had trouble finding ways to break out of their zone. Four minutes into the period, the Swedes rolled another wave of attacks when Henna Raunio dropped the puck to Svensson, who fired through traffic, but Ahola could make the stop.
Svensson found the puck in the corner and sent it to Ida Karlsson at the point, and her wrister found its way to the back of the net to give the female Tre Kronor a 1-0 lead at 4:14.
"These are close games, the margins are small. They capitalized on their chances, and we didn't. Today was their day," Nieminen said.
A few minutes later, Sweden got their first power play opportunity, and the Ohio State trio — Svensson, Raunio and Mira Jungaker — got to work. Raunio and Jungaker played the puck to Svensson, who fired a wicked wrister from the top of the left circle and beat Ahola top shelf on the stick side.
"It's kind of a set play but on the other hand, if I have a lane to shoot, I'll take the shot myself," Jungaker said. "We have a few set plays but we also go with the flow. Whatever works in the moment."
Halfway through the period, the Swedes had outshot Finland 9-0, but the Finns clawed their way back into the game, and in the second half, they outshot Sweden 8-4.
In the second period, the roles were reversed. Now it was Finland who pressured and Sweden who made hasty decisions in their own zone, unable to get out.
"The second period was ours, but we didn't manage to score. They defended the middle well, and our shots didn't get to the net," Nieminen said.
With grit and some fortunate bounces, the Swedish defense and Svensson Traff managed to keep the Finns off the scoreboard.
Around six minutes into the period, Michelle Lowenhielm carried the puck into the Finnish zone, all the way to Josefin Bouveng in the corner. She sent it back to Lowenhielm, who banked the puck to Jungaker on the blueline.
She fired it toward Ahola’s net, and in front, Sara Hjalmarsson tipped the shot in to make it 3-0 for Sweden at 6:14.
But the Finns didn’t give up. Two and a half minutes after the third Swedish goal, Petra Nieminen tipped Siiri Yrjola’s slapper pass top shelf, keeping the Finns' dreams alive.
However, that was as close as they got and Grillfors sealed the final score into an empty Finnish net with her first World Championship goal.
"I just wanted to make sure I got over the red line, but of course it was a big goal for me," Grillfors said. "It was nice to see it go in."
Hilda Svensson, Ida Karlsson, Sara Hjalmarsson and Tilde Grillfors scored for Sweden, Ebba Svensson Traff made 26 saves for Sweden. Petra Nieminen scored for Finland and Sanni Ahola in the Finnish goal stopped the puck 28 times.
"We started really well, dipped in the second period, and then came back to our own level in the third. We have a lot of great skaters on our team so we wanted to get the puck deep and work from there," said Sweden's Mira Jungaker.
"We're trying to put ourselves in a good position for the playoff round and we knew that the game against Finland would be a huge part of that," she added.
Sweden forechecked hard early on, and the Finnish defense had trouble finding ways to break out of their zone. Four minutes into the period, the Swedes rolled another wave of attacks when Henna Raunio dropped the puck to Svensson, who fired through traffic, but Ahola could make the stop.
Svensson found the puck in the corner and sent it to Ida Karlsson at the point, and her wrister found its way to the back of the net to give the female Tre Kronor a 1-0 lead at 4:14.
"These are close games, the margins are small. They capitalized on their chances, and we didn't. Today was their day," Nieminen said.
A few minutes later, Sweden got their first power play opportunity, and the Ohio State trio — Svensson, Raunio and Mira Jungaker — got to work. Raunio and Jungaker played the puck to Svensson, who fired a wicked wrister from the top of the left circle and beat Ahola top shelf on the stick side.
"It's kind of a set play but on the other hand, if I have a lane to shoot, I'll take the shot myself," Jungaker said. "We have a few set plays but we also go with the flow. Whatever works in the moment."
Halfway through the period, the Swedes had outshot Finland 9-0, but the Finns clawed their way back into the game, and in the second half, they outshot Sweden 8-4.
In the second period, the roles were reversed. Now it was Finland who pressured and Sweden who made hasty decisions in their own zone, unable to get out.
"The second period was ours, but we didn't manage to score. They defended the middle well, and our shots didn't get to the net," Nieminen said.
With grit and some fortunate bounces, the Swedish defense and Svensson Traff managed to keep the Finns off the scoreboard.
Around six minutes into the period, Michelle Lowenhielm carried the puck into the Finnish zone, all the way to Josefin Bouveng in the corner. She sent it back to Lowenhielm, who banked the puck to Jungaker on the blueline.
She fired it toward Ahola’s net, and in front, Sara Hjalmarsson tipped the shot in to make it 3-0 for Sweden at 6:14.
But the Finns didn’t give up. Two and a half minutes after the third Swedish goal, Petra Nieminen tipped Siiri Yrjola’s slapper pass top shelf, keeping the Finns' dreams alive.
However, that was as close as they got and Grillfors sealed the final score into an empty Finnish net with her first World Championship goal.
"I just wanted to make sure I got over the red line, but of course it was a big goal for me," Grillfors said. "It was nice to see it go in."
Finland vs Sweden - 2026 IIHF Women's World Championship
OF