The 27-year-old French-Canadian was the passing king in the SM playoffs ahead of the late Wednesday clash in Luleå with 13 assists in as many matches.
However, the goal column was empty.
So the odds of Frédéric Allard scoring a hat-trick were high.
Zero goals in the playoffs, would you have bet on him?, forward Mathias Bromé asks rhetorically and continues:
Incredibly fun that he gets to hang three pucks today. Nice shots too. Nice that he gets to break the goal drought in the playoffs.
Thanks to his hat-trick and goals from Linus Omark and top scorer Pontus Andreasson, Luleå has taken control of the SM final series and leads 2-1 in matches.
The fourth final will also be played in Luleå on Saturday.
"Asked them not to give up"
Allard came to Luleå before last season and had a tough first year. He was questioned by the fans – the same ones who sang his name over and over again on Wednesday evening.
Last year was tough. I came back from a four-month injury during the summer. I came to a new league and when I came back in November-December everyone flew ahead. It was tough mentally, he says.
I have superb teammates, I asked them not to give up hope on me, that I would get better. Now I come to the locker room with a smile on my lips, he says.
This season he has lifted – and another step up during the playoffs.
Linus Omark:
He has a playing sense beyond the ordinary. Then he usually passes more, but today he shot and he has a good shot too.
"A good boost"
Luleå has now won two straight matches over Brynäs and scored ten goals against the team that won the regular season and has impressed all season.
Linus Omark on the situation:
It's obviously good. We wanted to win this match and we're in a good position. But it's first to four that counts, he says.
About the goal explosion with ten goals in two matches, Omark says:
It's a good boost for ourselves. They get something to think about. But it's a new match on Saturday and 0-0, it doesn't matter if we win in sudden death or 5-1, it's just as valuable.
