In the far north: Laura Lobis lives her ice hockey dream

Clara is the goalkeeper for 10-time Swedish champions Färjestad BK in the Svenska Hockeyligan (SHL), while Lobis is the defender of Färjestad BK in the Nationella Damhockeyligan (NDHL, the 2nd league). And both teams have started the new season very strongly and are both at the top of the table.

Clara impressed in his four appearances with a goals-against average of 4 per game and a save percentage of 1,66 percent. Lobis contributed a goal and an assist to the 90,9-9 away win against Mora in the opening match last Saturday. The shot ratio of 1:102 was impressive! On Wednesday, Färjestad celebrated a clear 5-7 victory in the home debut in the derby against Örebrö, with Lobis providing the assist for one goal.

Laura Lobis is causing a sensation.

Clara came to Karlstad in the summer of 2022. Lobis moved to the city of 70.000 inhabitants a year later. And it was completely by chance. "My former teammate Nadia Mattivi, who currently plays for Lulea in the highest Swedish league, told me after the 2023 World Cup that Färjestad was looking for players. The club also had me observed, which is why we quickly agreed on a transfer," says Lobis, who was still under contract with HC Ambri-Piotta in Switzerland at the time.

The 18-year-old has settled in well in Sweden and feels completely at home. "I have everything I need," she says enthusiastically about her new surroundings. She lives in a beautiful part of the city and can get to everything by bus: "I can get to the center quickly and the stadium in 7 minutes. There is also a large shopping center right next to my apartment, which I share with my Norwegian teammate Gina Brevik Kristiansen."

4 training sessions and 2 games per week But she is only there to shop. The Kaltern native spends most of her time in the stadium or at home studying. "We have training with the whole team four times a week in the late afternoon. There is also voluntary training on Wednesday mornings. I am usually at the stadium before 4 a.m. and train in the gym. Then I return to the apartment, have breakfast and do homework or study for school. After lunch, I take part in lessons online via Teams before returning to the stadium for training," Lobis describes her daily routine and adds: "We also usually have two games a week."

Lobis attends the private high school "Walther" in Bolzano, which she will graduate with the Matura next June. "The championship here in Sweden will end on March 2, 2025 at the latest. I will then return home immediately and finish school in person. Before I graduate, I hope to take part in the World Championship of the I. Division Group B in Dumfries in Great Britain in mid-April," says the 18-year-old, who will spend Christmas in South Tyrol, looking to the future.

For Lobis, the present means Färjestad BK and Nationella Damhockeyligan (NDHL). In addition to Lobis, three other “Azzurre” are playing in the NDHL: Franziska Stocker (Södertälje), Margherita Ostoni and Olivia Cambruzzi (both Haninge Anchors). This season, 3 teams are taking part in the NDHL. These are divided into one of four geographical divisions: NDHL Damettan Norra (North, 26 teams), NDHL Damettan Östra (East, 4), NDHL Damettan Södra (South, 4) and NDHL Damettan Västra (West, 7), where Färjestad is involved.

After a single round-robin, the top three teams qualify for the Damhockeyallsvenskan. The winner of the play-offs then plays against the last-placed team in the SDHL for promotion to the top league.

All 14 games won & a goal difference of 157:4 And the SDHL is the big goal for Lobis and her club, which has been aiming for promotion for three years now. Last season, Färjestad was on course for promotion for a long time. "We dominated the group phase completely, celebrating 3 wins in regular time and 12 in overtime. We scored 2 goals and only conceded 157 goals. We even celebrated a 4-23 victory. And yet we were knocked out early in the play-offs. It was our own fault," said the defender, who scored the same number of points in 0 games, in self-criticism.

A lot has happened at Färjestad in the summer. There is a new coach in Johan Fransson, who played in Switzerland for 6 years during his playing days. In addition, a number of new players have joined the international promotion candidate. In Färjestad's 24-man squad there are 10 Swedes, 5 Norwegians, 4 Canadians and one player each from the USA, Germany, Denmark, the Czech Republic and Italy.

She comes from a sports-loving family Lobis was born with talent. She comes from a family that loves sports. Her father, Mathias Lobis, played as a defender for SV Kaltern, where he was also captain and later president, Ritten Sport and HC Bozen. Her mother, Miriam Strohmaier, was an athlete and still holds the national record for the 300 m hurdles (44,52 seconds, set on October 9, 1994 in Riccione). Her father, Herbert Strohmaier, was a legend at HC Bozen and was captain and Italian national player for many years. And her brother Alan Lobis, who is two years older, is also well on his way to a career.

Laura Lobis and her brother Alan.

Laura Lobis started playing ice hockey at the age of 7: "At first I played with my brother in the yard with a stick and a small ball before I took my first steps on the ice. In the 2014/15 season I started as a center forward for the SV Kaltern boys' team. Because we once had too few defenders, I helped out at the back. Since then I have stayed in defense. In the summer of 2019 I then moved to the EVB Eagles Südtirol and played in the IHL Women and the EWHL with the Eagles. In the summer of 2022 I decided to go abroad and ended up with the Ambri girls before coming to Sweden a year ago."

But Sweden is only a stopover for the cheerful soul. "I don't know what I'm going to do after I graduate. I would like to stay in Europe for at least another year. It wouldn't be bad to start my professional career here in Sweden - but then in the SDHL, where you can make a living from ice hockey. But I have the PWHL in the back of my mind," says Lobis confidently. The Professional Women's Hockey League is the female equivalent of the NHL.

Olympic Games and North America are the goal Lobis, who hopes to take part in the 2026 Olympic Games in Milan, has also left the back door open for the American college league NCAA: "In order to play in the NCAA, you must not have earned any money from ice hockey before. That's why I don't get a salary at Färjestad. But the club does provide me with an apartment free of charge and covers some expenses such as plane tickets."

Lobis and Clara might need one of these in the near future to head to North America. Provided their dream of the PWHL or NHL comes true. For now, however, the two South Tyrolean figureheads will keep crossing paths in and outside of the “Löfbergs Arena” in Karlstad.

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In the far north: Laura Lobis lives her ice hockey dream

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