PHOTO: Bildbyrån
Sidestepped from the start – but when the chance came, Junior crowns back Theo Lindstein took it straight away.
– It’s great fun to be involved, says Brynäsbacken, who was noted for two goals in the JVM premiere.
When the Junior Crowns national team captain Magnus Hävelid brought the squad to the JVM at home, there was Brynä’s talented back Theo Lindstein18, not included.
But everything changed when Jakob Norén suffered a concussion in the general rope against the USA before the JVM and had to be removed from the squad.
Lindstein was called up, spent most of Christmas Eve on the train and scored twice in the 6–0 win over Latvia.
– Once you got the news, all you had to do was pack your trunk and bag and get on the train down. “It’s always an honor to represent your country,” said Lindstein, drafted by St. Louis in the first round this summer.
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Impressed captain
He started the premiere as seventh back, but had to be replaced Elias Salomonsson who went on a match penalty already after 25 seconds.
In Thursday’s match against Germany – who won a resounding victory over Finland on Wednesday – Salomonsson is suspended and Lindstein is ready again. He is about to settle into the team and the national team captain Magnus Hävelid was impressed by Lindstein’s performance against Latvia:
– He played a fantastic match. He is a good passer and helps us create a good pace of the puck. He is in good shape, that was positive.
Hot matches
For Lindstein, it was easy to get into the team considering that he had played with most of them before. He was one of 14 players from the JVM team that won gold in the U18 World Cup last year.
However, it was unusual with the heat in a sold-out Scandinavium.
– It was terribly hot. I was completely exhausted after the first period and I was just sweating. You can cool down well during the period breaks and recover. That’s how it will be every match now, it’s just a matter of getting used to it, he says.
Ready to step into the hot air again.
READ MORE: Niklas Wikegård reveals Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s four harsh words – angry after the unexpected meeting: “Then he was angry with me”
Group play:
26/12 Latvia 6–0
28/12 Germany (19.30, Viaplay/TV6)
29/12: Canada (19.30, Viaplay/TV6)
31/12: Finland (2.30 p.m., SVT)
Quarter-finals will be played on January 2, semi-finals on January 4 and final and bronze match on January 5.
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