Frolunda Gothenburg were obviously in good spirits following their come-from-behind victory over ERC Ingolstadt on home ice Tuesday night. Perhaps nobody felt better than defenceman Lukas Bengtsson, who scored the aggregate-tying goal in the dying seconds, then assisted on the series-winner in overtime.

by Efraim Larsson

GOTHENBURG – After reaching the Champions Hockey League Final last season, it appeared they were headed for an early exit this year in the Round of 32. After opening with a 4–2 loss in Ingolstadt, they still trailed by one goal in the aggregate score in the dying seconds of the return game on home ice.

That's where defenceman Lukas Bengtsson made the difference. A late-season acquisition by Frolunda last season, 21-year-old Bengtsson has fit in nicely on the team's blueline and contributes offensively as well. He sure picked a good time on Tuesday, as his one-time slapper from the left point beat Ingolstadt goalie Timo Pielmeier over the glove with just 11 seconds left in regulation time. He wasn't finished, however, as he then assisted on Ryan Lasch's amazing overtime goal to win the series and advance to the next round.

Watch the game highlights HERE. They include the play leading to Bengtsson's goal starting at 2:51, and the play on the winning goal afterward.

Lukas, can you describe your feelings?

“Relief and joy on the same time. It feels truly fantastic that we managed to turn it around to our benefit and advanced to the next round. Ingolstadt were shockingly good, to be honest, and played a really great game today as well. They didn't gave up any space at all and really tore us apart from neutral zone into their defensive zone.”

What made them tear you apart?

“They always had at least one aggressive player in their defence with hard work on our puck carrier, blocking shots and blocking all passing lanes into the slot. I can't really put the finger on exactly what they did in the neutral zone, but they locked our offensive strides time after time. And when they got the scoring chances they were really dangerous, so we have to thank Lasse (Johansson) for this one. He made a lot of great and important saves to hold us in there! I think we showed great character by turning this around.”

You scored the 3–1 goal to tie the aggregate score with just 11 seconds left of the third period.

“An incredible feeling. I love to score a goal, whether it's late or early in the game or somewhere in between, but of course a goal of this importance feels extra good to score.”

Ryan Lasch scored quite an incredibly beautiful game-winning goal, didn't he?

“Yes, definitely. I heard him call my name behind me, so I dropped the puck to him and then he did the rest on his own. To be honest I have no idea what he did – he dangled through the whole team and somehow got the puck in the net, haha. Unbelievable. But a great feeling to see him score the goal, of course!”

So, how about your start of the season?

“I think it's a quite big difference compared to the ending of last season, where I came into the club during the playoffs. When I arrived they basically just said, ‘Go out and have fun. Just do your thing, kid,” so I just went out there every day, doing my thing. We really could've defeated Vaxjo in the semi-finals there, I really believe so. I mean, if we would've won Game 2 (where Vaxjo won the game in the third overtime) we would've led the series 2–0. But after all it was just great to be a part of a great club like Frolunda, showing off myself and doing what I love to do. Inspiring and instructive.

“Now, it's a tad different when starting the season with the team from scratch and it's a whole other level than the Allsvenskan (where Lukas played with Mora IK, the 2nd league in Sweden). We have to work harder every day, both on- and off-ice, which really shows the difference level between the leagues, but I think that I’m adapting to it more and more and I really love playing here with Frolunda.”

You've won 11 of 12 games so far this season (6/6 in the Swedish Hockey League, 5/6 in the CHL). What makes Frolunda that good?

“We really believe in what we do, and of course that's not the only reason. I think that we're a team with great skating skills and devoted players. When we do the hard work and small details we always discuss (backchecking, blocking shots, etc) we definitely have the skills and the chances of winning every game. We're a group of guys who mentally are really tight and that makes this team a rather strong one.”

Read more on the Frolunda Gothenburg – ERC Ingolstadt series HERE.