HV71 defeated Leksand 3-1 in Dalarna, Sweden, in the third qualifying match between the teams. HV71 took the lead in the second period with a goal from Jonathan Ang, who had earlier been subjected to a head tackle from Anton Johansson. Joona Luoto scored twice for HV71 in the third period, including an empty-net goal.
HV71 now leads the match series 3-0 and is one win away from securing an SHL contract. Leksand is one loss away from becoming a HockeyAllsvenskan team. No team has ever come back from a 0-3 deficit to win 4-3 in Swedish hockey.
In the third qualifying match, there were many empty seats in the stands as the public reportedly failed to support the crisis team. Leksand must now win four of the remaining five matches to stay in the SHL. Only five teams out of 81 attempts have turned around a 0-2 deficit in a seven-match series, and in qualifying play, it has happened only once in four instances.