Kvalserien

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Kvalserien, also called Kvalserien till SHL, was Sweden’s promotion tournament for ice hockey. It ran from 1975 to 2014 and decided which teams would play in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) the following season.

How it worked
- Six teams competed: the bottom two teams from the SHL and the top four from HockeyAllsvenskan, plus the winner of a separate six-round round-robin among the next four Allsvenskan teams.
- The six teams played a double round-robin, 10 games each (30 games in total).
- The top two teams were promoted to the SHL for the next season; the remaining four stayed in HockeyAllsvenskan.

Impact over the years
- The tournament moved many clubs between the SHL and HockeyAllsvenskan, with promotions and relegations occurring year by year. Notable clubs that moved in various seasons include Timrå IK, Leksands IF, Malmö Redhawks, Södertälje SK, Brynäs IF, Växjö Lakers, Rögle BK, Örebro HK and Djurgårdens IF.

The final edition
- The 40th and last Kvalserien was in 2013–14. Örebro HK defended their SHL spot, Djurgårdens IF returned to the SHL after a two-year stint in HockeyAllsvenskan, and AIK were relegated to HockeyAllsvenskan.
- From the 2014–15 season, Kvalserien was replaced by a playoff round to determine promotion to the SHL.