In the biggest upset of Thursday's Game Day 3 action, Skellefteå AIK fell to the Rouen Dragons 1-0 after the Swedes were unable to generate much offence and the French played a perfect defensive game. Tappara Tampere, however, remained undefeated with a 2-1 shootout win over Adler Mannheim, their second two-point game of the season.

After three games, Tappara continue to get better as they rank among the top five in several categories of play including fewest goals against (0.67) and penalty kill percentage (100.00%). They also have one of the most elite netminders in the entire league in Christian Heljanko.

The young Finn leads all netminders in save percentage with 97.59%, is second in goals against average (0.63) and is tied for first in shutouts with 1 through three contests. Having that security in net gives the defending Champions an unquantifiable edge that few clubs can match.

Skellefteå, however, have dropped their past two home contests and don’t look like the squad that defeated Red Bull Salzburg 4-0 all the way back on Game Day 1. The Swedes have gone 0-for-10 on the powerplay dating back to their bout with Dynamo Pardubice and have only managed one goal on 16 opportunities. Figuring out a way to utilise the man-advantage should be a focus for a squad that’s only averaging 2.33 goals per game.

Yet, not all need be doom and gloom for the Swedes. While finding the net against a former CHL MVP in Heljanko could prove challenging, Rickard Hugg who has three points (1G, 2A) and Martins Dzierkals who has two points (2G), have shown flashes of brilliance and could give the Swedes the chance to engineer an upset of their own.