SCB Fribourg Gotteron: Bern defeated Freiburg 6:3

He should just keep playing as he has done so far and the results will follow. This is what Jussi Tapola said a week ago about his unsuccessful striker Victor Ejdsell. The Swede had done so many little things right so far in the young season: winning puck after puck in forechecking, serving teammates, getting himself into shooting position. But Ejdsell’s personal record after seven games was: zero goals.

“In the past, as a young player, this would have frustrated me,” he says now after the game against Friborg. “But I learned that you can’t force anything. If I do good things, I will eventually have luck on my side. That’s basically how scoring works.”

And now, of all things in the Zähringer derby against Gottéron, the button opens for Ejdsell. And how.

It starts with the second assist at 2-0, a typical Ejdsell action: successful forechecking with the long stick, the direct pass to Austin Czarnik, whose shot becomes an assist for goalscorer Marco Lehmann. “This play describes my greatest strength,” says Ejdsell.

He is 1.95 meters tall, has long arms and of course a long stick (“But not a very long one in comparison, I don’t like that!”): Ejdsell is Bern’s new forechecking octopus. And as natural as these actions may be given his physique, they are not the most natural thing in the world for him.

“It’s only been in the last five years or so that I’ve learned that this is the way I can help the team the most,” says Ejdsell. “Of course the fans prefer to see tough checks. But I ask: Do we want to win or check hard? I’d rather win…”

In the final third, Ejdsell secured the victory, scoring his first two goals within 27 seconds to make it 4:1 and 5:1. After the latter, Reto Berra goes crazy in the Gottéron goal. First he hits his stick short and small on the goal post, then he voluntarily leaves his goal with clear hand signals of frustration and resignation: I’m done!

Czarnik and Lehmann with 4 points each

It’s the big night for the Czarnik line, which scores a total of five goals. The American (0 goals/4 assists) and Lehmann (2/2) even managed 4-point evenings. Lehmann is number 1 in the league with seven goals, Czarnik leads the scorers list with 13 points in seven appearances.

Tapola only re-formed this line a week ago, and her “explosion” began early on, even if she was initially unable to reward herself with goals as the game was playing: when the trio was on the ice, they dominated, according to league analytics, with 83 so far Percentage of goal danger. Against Gottéron, Ejdsell achieved 89 percent – ​​completely crazy numbers.

“Austin is incredibly smart, I try to win duels with my size, and Lehmann has the speed, the vision and the shot – a few elements come together,” explains Ejdsell, explaining the recipe for success. “The potential for a top line is there.”

And Ejdsell is still in the discovery phase that is typical for players who have moved from the SHL to the National League: “In Sweden you learn to play with control from an early age. Here in Switzerland the game is so much more unpredictable.” This was his first lesson in the NL: “You have to be much quicker with your thoughts, you have to trust your instincts much more and be constantly ready for anything.” It’s ice hockey that’s a lot of fun, says Ejdsell.

Simon Mosers Retro-Moment

The game ends as Ejdsell describes it: wildly. After Berra’s escape, Gottéron reduced the score to 5:3 with two late goals, and Waltteri Merelä made the final score 6:3 with the Empty Netter. Bern is now third in the very tight table, just one point behind the new leader Rapperswil-Jona.

Looking back, it is also a game that answers the question of the difference between insecurity and self-confidence. Gottéron, now second from bottom and plagued by blatant weaknesses in finishing, has top chances early on. But Adam Reideborn, who was recently undefeated in two games, miraculously stopped both Julien Sprunger and Marcus Sörensen twice.

In between, Simon Moser takes Bern’s first chance to score his first goal of the season, and the former SCB captain creates a brief retro moment. First, he wins several duels for the puck in forechecking, finds defender Louis Füllmann on the blue line and converts the rebound to make it 1-0 – these are actions like the now 35-year-old Moser’s best days.

Confidence here, uncertainty there. And looking back, it was the beginning of the end for Gottéron in this game.

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