Stenlund tries an empty netter from his own blue line but the puck goes icing.

Lukko plays with 6 men and no goalie. It's a desperate attempt to score 3 goals in a minute but there's no other options now. Söderström freezes the puck, faceoff HV71's end. Lukko takes a timeout.

Lukko pulls their goalie

HV71 gains offensive edge and controls the play. Lukko defense struggles to clear the puck

Faceoff HV71's end

Lukko gets away with what looked like a tripping call but then again HV71 smashed the guy to the boards to make justice.

Lukko offense seems powerless now. HV71 knows they are close to win this series fair and square

Today's attendance is 2494.

Lukko gains some control on the play but time is running out; they're still 3 goals down. Söderström shuts the puck for a faceoff. Power break

Erik Andersson dekes around Lukko defense but the man is stopped with a body check. HV71 in control.

Right after being short handed Lukko starts a strong offensive pressure. Nice blocking by HV71 defense

Home team at full strength.

Almquist skates to the scoring slot and releases his fiery shot. No screen ahead so Karjalainen makes an easy save. Faceoff Lukko's end

Major hustle in front of Karjalainen's net ends after forward makes the final shot toward Lukko's net that is easily picked up by goalie. Faceoff Lukko's end

Sevänen's block turns the game around. Puck behind HV71's net

Vahalahti looses puck dangerously on Lukko's end but HV71 can't capitalize. Icing Lukko.

Karjalainen's amazing glove save almost turns into a goal when the puck drops back to the play. Game is frozen down after a following shot. Faceoff Lukko's end

Antonen makes the play and Koivisto is close redirecting the puck to the net but he misses the net completely. Game on to the other end, Karjalainen freezes for a face off.

Lukko survives the man down situation and Karjalainen already has made some crucial saves. Faceoff Lukko's end

Home team at full strength.

Torngren walks around defensemen but doesn't get a good shot at the goal. HV71 in control.

Lukko changes goalies: Kähkönen out, Karjalainen in.

Lukko gets back on their feet and makes good plays on offensive zone. Rush ends after Söderström closes the puck after a shot from the blue line. Faceoff HV71's end

Icing Lukko. Home team looking quite beaten after the last setback

Power break.

After Lukko's good chances HV71 turns the game over and goes on man advantage rush. Shot aimed straight to Kähkönen's lap is blocked. Lukko gains control of the puck

Icing HV71.

HV71 has a dangerous opportunity to score when the puck gets redirected after a shot from the blu line. This time Kähkönen has the luck on his side but swedes keep on driving the puck to the net

Lukko beats the icing call and gives some good pressure.

Puck flies over the glass after a blocked shot towards Lukko's net. Faceoff Lukko's end.

Icing HV71.

Visitors make aggressive plays on Lukko's zone but shots are either blocked or denied. Kähkönen closes for a faceoff, HV71 is very agitated.

Reese's wrister is furious but Kähkönen has a clear view on the puck and closes for a face off. Power break.

Suuronen shoots downlow after a turnover and shifts the pressure in HV71's end

Offside Lukko.

Seems that HV71's struggles after they pass the center ice, defensive zone is well covered for now.

Offside HV71.

Niemelä's stick gets broken mid-play, almost hits HV71 defenseman in the face. Mid-ice faceoff.

Icing HV71

HV71 seeks for a fresh start but after initial rushes Lukko picks up where it left in 1st: full control of the play.

Lukko icing. The intermission is clearly on both teams' mind

Icing Lukko.

Torngren is hurt after a clean check on Lukko's end. No penalties.

Closing in on the final minutes of 1st period. Tempo clearly increases as both teams are eager to advance

Icing Lukko. HV71 still having troubles making the play towards offensive zone.

Home team at full strength.

Visiting team at full strength.

Lukko very close putting another quick one to the back of the net but puck whistles by. Liedes is hurt after a check on boards, game is stopped .

Tedenby hits the post after a good offensive pressure! Finns in trouble in their own end

After 7 minutes Lukko slightly controls the game even though time with puck is less than HV71's. Both teams are playing defensive end very conservatively. Power break.

HV71 tries to gather their thoughts after the first goal on them but offensive play doesn't get on the right track.

HV71 creates some good chances with 1st line but Lukko clears. Swedes in control

Jansson´s fiery shot gets redirected by defenseman´s stick but Kähkönen sees the shot and freezes. Faceoff Lukko´s end

Koivistoinen receives first opportunity to score on close range but Söderström denies with a pad. Faceoff HV71´s end

A little over 5 minutes until we start tonight´s matchup. If after 60 minutes Lukko is two goals ahead we will play a 10 minute overtime with a golden goal rule. HV71 will advance with even losing by a goal tonight. Odds are on HV71´s side but everything can and WILL happen in the next 60 minutes...

Cramo TopScorers tonight:

Lukko: Aaron Gagnon, 3 pts (1+2)
HV71: Martin Thornberg, 9 pts (4+5)

Deciding match between Lukko and HV71 gets on its way in 30 minutes. The team with most goals in total of two games will advance tonight to the round of 16. HV71 won the 1st game 2-0 last Tuesday and that means that Lukko has to score at least three times tonight in order to still catch the swedes. A lot is at stake today and not an inch will be given in tonight by both sides.

Starting lineups:

Lukko Rauma: Kähkönen (Karjalainen) – Liedes, Gagnon, Vahalahti, Koivisto, Tiivola, Antonen, Lähteenmäki, Vidgren, Koivistoinen, Claireaux, Suuronen, Väyrynen, Niemelä – Seigo, Virtanen, Sevanen, Mäkinen, Ventelä, Ahonen, Riikola

Head coach: Juha Vuori

HV71 Jönköping: Söderström (Pettersson Wentzel) – Thornberg, Sundh, Brithen, Onerud, Tedenby, Christensen, Sandberg, Andersson, Torngren, Andersson E., Andersson R., Stenlund, Laine – Almquist, Reese, Pilut, Hansson, Berglund, Persson, Borgman

Head coach: Johan Lindbom

Referees: Piechaczek (GER), Leppänen – Suominen, Österholm (All FIN).

Two early goals and some smart defending saw HV71 secure a two-goal win over Lukko last week, with the sides now going back to Rauma with the Swedes in the driving seat.

“We came out great and scored two quick goals and played the game pretty well I think,” said centre Ted Brithen, who scored the second goal. Brithen's line, which includes CHL top scorer Martin Thornberg, had some great chances to add a third goal, which would have really given them a stranglehold on the series, but just couldn't connect again. “Of course we went for it if we got the chance, but we wanted to make sure we didn't lose the puck too easily. Maybe we dumped the puck a little too often instead of taking it into the zone like you do when you’ve got momentum in the game,” he said.

Coming back is not an impossible task, but to do so, Lukko will have to do some things differently. “We have to get our offensive game going,” Lukko defenceman Janne Niskala said. “We spent too much time in our own zone. Just get the momentum going and don't take too many penalties. We are confident that we can turn this series around – it's only two goals. Last year we were down too and managed to turn it around.” Last season, Lukko made it all the way to the Semi-Finals and the season before they made it to the Quarters, where they lost to eventual champions Lulea Hockey. As for HV71, last season was the first time they made it as far as the Round of 16, and they're one more shut-down defensive effort away from returning.

Welcome. Game starts at 18:00.