On Tuesday evening, Modo was eliminated from the SHL after a fourth consecutive loss to HV71 in the relegation playoffs. After the 3–2 match, there were upset feelings surrounding a missed icing that led to HV71's 2–0 goal in the second period.
The SHL's referee chief Tomas Thorsbrink has received several reactions that have crossed the line since then.
The unpleasant thing is that it has become a daily routine. You should see my email inbox after yesterday. If I had sent the same to someone at another workplace, I would have been fired. It's so incredibly rough stuff. It's 2025, it can't be like this, he says to Expressen.
"Deeply disturbing"
The SHL has zero tolerance for threats against referees. The threats are forwarded to the Swedish Ice Hockey Association's security department, which decides on police reports. Thorsbrink does not want to comment on what the latest threats concern or how many there are.
Threats occur. There are many lunatics out there, he says and continues:
It's deeply disturbing. It doesn't just affect the referees, but it's also a larger recruitment issue. Who really wants to become a referee when it's like this?
Murder threats in HockeyAllsvenskan
According to HockeyAllsvenskan's referee chief Björn Wettergren, who Expressen has also interviewed, three to four murder threats have been directed at referees during the last playoff week. All have been reported to the police.
It's always particularly tough for the one who experiences it for the first time, and it's tough for everyone regardless. It's always in the back of your mind that it's enough for one lunatic to make it real, he says.
