Ice Hockey: EIHL - Saturday in summary

-
Those “shock” results just keep coming ...

Pic: Steve Gunn
Saturday night saw Glasgow Clan triumph in Nottingham, while Sheffield Steelers tasted defeat in Manchester, underlining, once again, that the “Big Four” are going to have to work harder than ever to establish dominance in the 2019-20  quest for honours.

It’s still very early days, of course, but those losses give an insight into how competitive this campaign could be.

Manchester is a tough place to go, as Steelers found out their cost as they ran into a hot goalie and a well-drilled Storm outfit.

A tied hockey game was blown wide open with two goals in three minutes, and coach Ryan Finnerty savoured a win against his old club.

Interesting to see how Steelers respond tonight as they host Cardiff Devils.

They have already cut big summer signing, former KHL and NHLer Martin St Pierre.

He joined on a short-term contract with both sides having the option to extend.

The club moved first, calling time in mid-September on a player with a hockey CV straight out of the top drawer - NHL, KHL and world championships - who was expected to set this league alight.

In his place as come the grittier Lucas Sanstrom who now has the task of adapting to UK hockey after a career playing in Sweden.

Steelers would certainly kill to have the current road form of Glasgow Clan who followed up victories in Sheffield and Cardiff with another big win in Nottingham - 4-2 victors over Panthers to go top of the table.

The teams meet again down south. What price a clean sweep for Fitzy's purple army?

Dundee Stars are enjoying a fine start to the campaign, moving into fourth spot with a 6-2 win over Guildford Flames.

They did it with a period to spare as Egils Kalns’ goal seconds before the second buzzer gave them a rock solid 5-2 advantage.

Stars now follow Flames down the road for the return - a mere 480 miles for each team before they kit up once more.

Cardiff Devils pioneered a standing section at their rink, and the fans had plenty to cheer as they crushed Coventry 5-1

Blaze return to home ice tonight to face Manchester Storm.

In the Challenge Cup, Fife Flyers will drag their travel-weary limbs up the rink for a re-match with Belfast Giants.

Fife’s weekend has consisted of two ferry trips across the Irish Sea and two torturous road trips down to Stranraer - a huge amount of time consumed just to play two hockey games.

Saturday saw them well beaten 7-2 with the bulk of the damage coming in a 3-0 middle period.


They will need to shake off any signs of tiredness if they are to emerge from the weekend with points to keep momentum in their qualifying group.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bruce Springsteen, Sunderland: It's raining ...

-
Image
Where this gig rates on Springsteen’s tour is entirely subjective, but it will go down as one of the wettest, if not THE wettest ... A summer’s night in Sunderland saw the heavens open and the poncho sellers make a quick buck as they huddled in bus stops on the road leading to the rather mis-named Stadium Of Light which was shrouded in low cloud. It made Manchester 2016 feel like nothing more than a light shower, so all credit fo Springsteen and the E Street Band - and their tech team - for turning in a superb 28-song, near  three hour show in the most challenging of conditions. Any time you thought the rain had eased, you only had to look to the lights to see it swirling round the stage and the stadium. Instruments were soaked, and the close ups on the giant screens showed just how wet things really were up there. While the band donned jackets and scarves, Springsteen strolled out dressed as if it was just another day; waistcoat, tie and shirt, took one look at the rainfall and op...
Read more

Bruce Springsteen, Wembley (Part One): A perfect set, an utterly magical gig

-
Image
The list of superlatives to describe a Springsteen gig has been used up. We need to invent new words. If Cardiff was a mesmerising UK tour opener, then the first night in London, which marks his departure from these shores, surpassed it in every possible way. A flawless set delivered with such energy and intensity he didn’t actually pause to formally say hello to the crowd. The Boss had business to attend to - a jaw-dropping, highlight reel show of 31 songs over three and a quarter hours. It’s incredible to think this came on the cusp of the 50th anniversary of his first ever UK gigs - modest affairs at the Hammersmith Odeon which entered Springsteen folklore as he bristled against the hype surrounding the release of Born To Run, and famously tore down a poster from the front of the venue declaring “finally London is ready for Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band." London was more than ready for this first of two Wembley gigs. Standing on the pitch, I’d forgotten just how vast ...
Read more

From Asbury Park to Boucher Park ...

-
Image
  A near ten-hour flight separates Asbury Park, NJ, and Boucher Park, Belfast, but the difference between them is much, much wider. On one hand you have the mesmerising imagery of boardwalks, carnivals and the Stone Pony, on the other, a park that is basically grass and gravel, next to a generic industrial estate and retail park that could be Anywhere, UK. Belfast’s Boucher Park is as far removed from rock ‘n’ roll as you can imagine - only the moving canvas of Springsteen t-shirts gave away the fact something extraordinary was happening close to the tile warehouses and garden furniture outlets. The stop–start early queue which snaked to the gates led to a wristband which led to the front of the stage with tantalising snippets from the end of the soundcheck carrying over the fencing. I’ve never had the urge to do ‘the pit’ or rollcall - turns out you didn’t really need to do either in Belfast as the wristband got me to within half a dozen rows at the front.I suspect I could have go...
Read more