With 34 minutes gone on the clock, Oskar Sundqvist was brutally tackled with a strong knee check by Switzerland's national team forward Timo Meier from New Jersey Devils.
Meier was fortunate to be handed a two-minute penalty and escaped a match penalty, while Sundqvist was carried out by his teammates. After the collision, Albert Johansson scuffled with Meier, and Johansson was also sent off to the immense frustration of the Swedes.
"Unbelievably unfair. Cowardly referees. They don't dare to decide against the Swiss public. Really cowardly," said the 18-year-old Ivar Stenberg to Swedish media "Aftonbladet". "They had already given a five-minute penalty (against Dean Kukan, editor's note), so they didn't want to give another one."
Defenseman Mattias Ekholm was also certain that the match penalty given to Kukan in the 7th minute could have influenced the referee's decision in Meier's case. "Personally, I think it's a clear knee check," says the NHL player. "I don't know if the referees got scared after the five-minute penalty in the first period. But hockey is hockey - you have to judge every situation for what it is."
After the Swedes took a 1-0 lead in the first period, the host nation managed to turn the tide and booked their ticket for the semi-final after a 3-1 win against the Scandinavians.