# 2015–16 SHL season

The 2015–16 SHL season was the 41st season of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL). The regular season began in September 2015 and ended in March 2016. The playoffs were played in March–April 2016.
Modo Hockey and Karlskrona HK were forced to play in the SHL qualifiers to defend their SHL status. Karlskrona won their series against AIK in five games while Modo lost to Leksands IF over seven games. Therefore, Leksand were promoted to the SHL on the expense of Modo.

## Regular season
### Standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Skellefteå AIK | 52 | 33 | 4 | 4 | 11 | 160 | 103 | +57 | 111 | Qualification to Quarter-finals |
| 2 | Frölunda HC | 52 | 30 | 7 | 0 | 15 | 169 | 112 | +57 | 104 | Qualification to Quarter-finals |
| 3 | Linköpings HC | 52 | 23 | 9 | 7 | 13 | 163 | 121 | +42 | 94 | Qualification to Quarter-finals |
| 4 | Luleå HF | 52 | 26 | 5 | 4 | 17 | 140 | 123 | +17 | 92 | Qualification to Quarter-finals |
| 5 | Färjestad BK | 52 | 20 | 10 | 9 | 13 | 141 | 130 | +11 | 89 | Qualification to Quarter-finals |
| 6 | Växjö Lakers | 52 | 25 | 4 | 4 | 19 | 147 | 139 | +8 | 87 | Qualification to Quarter-finals |
| 7 | Djurgårdens IF | 52 | 23 | 5 | 7 | 17 | 144 | 135 | +9 | 86 | Qualification to Round of 16 |
| 8 | Örebro HK | 52 | 19 | 6 | 8 | 19 | 135 | 146 | −11 | 77 | Qualification to Round of 16 |
| 9 | HV71 | 52 | 21 | 4 | 4 | 23 | 138 | 146 | −8 | 75 | Qualification to Round of 16 |
| 10 | Brynäs IF | 52 | 21 | 4 | 3 | 24 | 133 | 138 | −5 | 74 | Qualification to Round of 16 |
| 11 | Rögle BK | 52 | 16 | 4 | 6 | 26 | 125 | 154 | −29 | 62 | |
| 12 | Malmö Redhawks | 52 | 15 | 5 | 6 | 26 | 116 | 153 | −37 | 61 | |
| 13 | Modo Hockey | 52 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 32 | 119 | 166 | −47 | 49 | Qualification to Relegation playoffs |
| 14 | Karlskrona HK | 52 | 5 | 4 | 8 | 35 | 120 | 184 | −64 | 31 | Qualification to Relegation playoffs |

### Statistics
#### Scoring leaders

List shows the ten best skaters based on the number of points during the regular season. If two or more skaters are tied (i.e. same number of points, goals and played games), all of the tied skaters are shown.
    As of 8 March 2016
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = Plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/– | PIM |
| Lasch, Ryan Ryan Lasch | Frölunda HC | 51 | 15 | 36 | 51 | +10 | 20 |
| Thoresen, Patrick Patrick Thoresen | Djurgårdens IF | 49 | 15 | 33 | 48 | +12 | 34 |
| Zackrisson, Patrik Patrik Zackrisson | Skellefteå AIK | 52 | 15 | 33 | 48 | +25 | 68 |
| Gulas, Milan Milan Gulaš | Färjestad BK | 51 | 20 | 25 | 45 | –4 | 20 |
| Gynge, Richard Richard Gynge | Växjö Lakers | 46 | 21 | 23 | 44 | +23 | 24 |
| Johnson, Andreas Andreas Johnson | Frölunda HC | 52 | 19 | 25 | 44 | +8 | 18 |
| Gordon, Andrew Andrew Gordon | Linköpings HC | 52 | 18 | 26 | 44 | +18 | 30 |
| Norman, John John Norman | Skellefteå AIK | 47 | 17 | 25 | 42 | +5 | 18 |
| Roe, Garrett Garrett Roe | Linköpings HC | 41 | 14 | 27 | 41 | +14 | 28 |
| Anderson, Matt Matt Anderson | Djurgårdens IF | 52 | 18 | 22 | 40 | +8 | 30 |

#### Leading goaltenders

These are the leaders in GAA among goaltenders who played at least 40% of the team's minutes. The table is sorted by GAA, and the criteria for inclusion are bolded.
    As of 8 March 2016
GP = Games played; TOI = Time on ice (minutes); GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; Sv% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average
| Player | Team | GP | TOI | GA | SO | Sv% | GAA |
| Johansson, Lars Lars Johansson | Frölunda HC | 36 | 1962:30 | 57 | 7 | 92.74 | 1.74 |
| Svensson, Markus Markus Svensson | Skellefteå AIK | 37 | 2148:23 | 66 | 7 | 92.20 | 1.84 |
| Lassinantti, Joel Joel Lassinantti | Luleå HF | 33 | 2002:46 | 65 | 4 | 92.12 | 1.95 |
| Rautio, David David Rautio | Linköpings HC | 28 | 1589:57 | 52 | 2 | 91.61 | 1.96 |
| Pogge, Justin Justin Pogge | Färjestad BK | 26 | 1512:11 | 53 | 1 | 92.24 | 2.10 |
| Högberg, Marcus Marcus Högberg | Linköpings HC | 28 | 1581:05 | 61 | 2 | 91.13 | 2.31 |
| Starkbaum, Bernhard Bernhard Starkbaum | Brynäs IF | 28 | 1643:17 | 65 | 2 | 91.16 | 2.37 |
| Armalis, Mantas Mantas Armalis | Djurgårdens IF | 34 | 1985:52 | 80 | 2 | 91.82 | 2.42 |
| Gunnarsson, Jonas Jonas Gunnarsson | Malmö Redhawks | 44 | 2549:43 | 105 | 2 | 91.32 | 2.47 |
| Pettersson-Wentzel, Fredrik Fredrik Pettersson-Wentzel | HV71 | 43 | 2467:01 | 102 | 2 | 91.41 | 2.48 |

## Playoffs

The top six teams will qualify directly for the quarter-finals, while the four teams ranked 7–10 will play a best-of-three series and battle for the two remaining spots.

### Playoff bracket

In the first round the 7th-ranked team will meet the 10th-ranked team and the 8th-ranked team will meet the 9th-ranked team for a place in the second round. In the second round, the top-ranked team will meet the lowest-ranked winner of the first round, the 2nd-ranked team will face the other winner of the first round, the 3rd-ranked team will face the 6th-ranked team, and the 4th-ranked team will face the 5th-ranked team. In the third round, the highest remaining seed is matched against the lowest remaining seed. In each round the higher-seeded team is awarded home advantage. The first round the meetings are played as best-of-three series and the rest is best-of-seven series that follows an alternating home team format: the higher-seeded team will play at home for games 1 and 3 (plus 5 and 7 if necessary), and the lower-seeded team will be at home for game 2 and 4 (plus 6 if necessary).
| First round | First round | First round | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| | | | 1 | Skellefteå AIK | 4 | | | | | | |
| 7 | Djurgårdens IF | 2 | 9 | HV71 | 0 | | | | | | |
| 10 | Brynäs IF | 1 | | | | 1 | Skellefteå AIK | 4 | | | |
| | | | | | | 6 | Växjö Lakers | 3 | | | |
| | | | 2 | Frölunda HC | 4 | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | | | |
| | | | 7 | Djurgårdens IF | 1 | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | | | |
| | | | | | | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | 1 | Skellefteå AIK | 1 |
| | | | | | | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | 2 | Frölunda HC | 4 |
| | | | 3 | Linköpings HC | 2 | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | | | |
| 8 | Örebro HK | 0 | 6 | Växjö Lakers | 4 | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | (Pairings are re-seeded after the first and second round) | | | |
| 9 | HV71 | 2 | | | | 2 | Frölunda HC | 4 | | | |
| | | | | | | 4 | Luleå HF | 2 | | | |
| | | | 4 | Luleå HF | 4 | | | | | | |
| | | | 5 | Färjestad BK | 1 | | | | | | |

### Play In Round

The teams ranked 7 and 10, and the teams ranked 8 and 9, respectively, will face each other in a best-of-three series in order to qualify for the quarter-finals. The better-ranked teams in the two series will receive home advantage, i.e. two home games, if necessary. The two winners will take the two remaining quarter-final spots.

#### (7) Djurgårdens IF vs. (10) Brynäs IF

* Djurgårdens IF won series 2–1

#### (8) Örebro HK vs. (9) HV71

* HV71 won series 2–0

### Quarter-finals
#### (1) Skellefteå AIK vs. (9) HV71

* Skellefteå AIK won series 4–0

#### (2) Frölunda HC vs. (7) Djurgårdens IF

* Frölunda HC won series 4–1
* Note: Games 3 and 5 were played at Frölundaborg.

#### (3) Linköpings HC vs. (6) Växjö Lakers

* Växjö Lakers won series 4–2

#### (4) Luleå HF vs. (5) Färjestad BK

* Luleå HF won series 4–1

### Semi-finals
#### (1) Skellefteå AIK vs. (6) Växjö Lakers

* Skellefteå AIK won series 4–3

#### (2) Frölunda HC vs. (4) Luleå HF

* Frölunda HC won series 4–2

### Finals
#### (1) Skellefteå AIK vs. (2) Frölunda HC

* Frölunda HC won series 4–1
Games in italics indicate games that will only be played if necessary to determine a winner of the series.

### Statistics
#### Playoff scoring leaders

List shows the ten best skaters based on the number of points during the playoffs. If two or more skaters are tied (i.e. same number of points, goals and played games), all of the tied skaters are shown. Updated as of April 24, 2016.
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = Plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/– | PIM |
| Lehkonen, Artturi Artturi Lehkonen | Frölunda HC | 16 | 11 | 8 | 19 | +11 | 4 |
| Lasch, Ryan Ryan Lasch | Frölunda HC | 16 | 8 | 11 | 19 | +11 | 2 |
| Norman, John John Norman | Skellefteå AIK | 16 | 5 | 8 | 13 | +6 | 4 |
| Ritola, Mattias Mattias Ritola | Skellefteå AIK | 16 | 5 | 8 | 13 | –1 | 10 |
| Gynge, Richard Richard Gynge | Växjö Lakers | 13 | 5 | 7 | 12 | +1 | 6 |
| Hultström, Linus Linus Hultström | Djurgårdens IF | 8 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 0 | 6 |
| Granström, Jonathan Jonathan Granström | Luleå HF | 11 | 5 | 6 | 11 | –1 | 14 |
| Calof, Andrew Andrew Calof | Skellefteå AIK | 16 | 7 | 3 | 10 | +3 | 4 |
| Ericsson, Jimmie Jimmie Ericsson | Skellefteå AIK | 15 | 3 | 7 | 10 | +5 | 20 |
| Fantenberg, Oscar Oscar Fantenberg | Frölunda HC | 16 | 2 | 8 | 10 | +8 | 6 |
| Zackrisson, Patrik Patrik Zackrisson | Skellefteå AIK | 16 | 2 | 8 | 10 | –4 | 6 |

#### Playoff leading goaltenders

These are the leaders in GAA and save percentage among goaltenders who played at least 40% of the team's minutes. The table is sorted by GAA, and the criteria for inclusion are bolded. Updated as of April 24, 2016.
GP = Games played; TOI = Time on ice (minutes); GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; Sv% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average
| Player | Team | GP | TOI | GA | SO | Sv% | GAA |
| Johansson, Lars Lars Johansson | Frölunda HC | 8 | 462:08 | 11 | 1 | 94.69 | 1.43 |
| Svensson, Markus Markus Svensson | Skellefteå AIK | 12 | 724:42 | 23 | 3 | 91.39 | 1.90 |
| Nihlstorp, Cristopher Cristopher Nihlstorp | Växjö Lakers | 10 | 563:18 | 19 | 0 | 91.40 | 2.02 |
| Pogge, Justin Justin Pogge | Färjestad BK | 4 | 231:33 | 8 | 0 | 93.33 | 2.07 |
| Gustafsson, Johan Johan Gustafsson | Frölunda HC | 9 | 506:22 | 19 | 0 | 92.02 | 2.25 |
| Lassinantti, Joel Joel Lassinantti | Luleå HF | 11 | 667:32 | 25 | 0 | 91.88 | 2.25 |

## SHL awards

* Guldhjälmen: Anton Rödin, Brynäs IF
* Guldpucken: Patrick Thoresen, Djurgårdens IF
* Honken Trophy: Lars Johansson, Frölunda HC
* Håkan Loob Trophy: Nick Johnson, Brynäs IF
* Rookie of the Year: Ludvig Rensfeldt, Rögle BK
* Salming Trophy: Jonas Junland, Linköpings HC
* Stefan Liv Memorial Trophy: Johan Sundström, Frölunda HC
* Guldpipan: Mikael Nord