Match Report: 29.11.2014 - Blaze v Steelers EC/EIHL

Saturday 29^th November 2014 – Coventry Blaze (8-9-1) v Sheffield Steelers (13-4-0) @ SkyDome Arena. Face-off: 7pm, Erhardt Conference/Elite League

Coventry Blaze – 6
Jereme Tendler (2) – 2^nd, 2^nd PP
Cale Tanaka – 2^nd
Kyle Bochek – 2^nd
Russell Cowley – 2^nd
Steven Goertzen – 3^rd PP

Sheffield Steelers – 2
Robert Dowd – 1^st PP
Michael Forney – 3^rd

The game got underway and Coventry would receive an early powerplay as Phil Hill was called for hooking but Sheffield would keep the home side to the edges and almost went ahead after Sarich saw his shot tipped wide by Phillips after O’Connor’s shot was blocked, Sheffield would kill the penalty and it would be all Sheffield dominating the first session as Brian Stewart was standing on his head against the visitors, Coventry was being massively out shot but went very close to opening the scoring when Ross Venus saw his back hand go just wide of Frank Doyle’s goal but former Steeler Steven Goertzen would get called for tripping and Sheffield would have a go on the man advantage and again it was all Sheffield with the visitors having chance after chances but at 18:09 Sheffield would open the scoring on the man advantage as Mosienko won the face-off to Stewart’s left the puck dropped to Dowd who released a wrist shot to beat the Blaze netminder to give the Steelers a 1-0 lead going into the break.

End of the 1st Period: Coventry Blaze 0–1 Sheffield Steelers

Shots on Goal: Blaze 7-21 Steelers

Coventry came out for the second period all guns blazing and absolutely blitz the visitors as Blaze dumped one in and hard work by Tanaka ended up with him in front but Doyle saved brilliant and again soon after Ashley Tait exchanged passes with Ryan O’Marra he could only shoot into the glove of Doyle but Coventry were soon level when at 24:58 Tendler managed to skate through 1 on 1 with Doyle and he fired a nice back handed shot that went through Doyle for 1-1. They were almost ahead after Sindel found himself all alone in front of goal but he saw his one timer fantastically caught by Doyle. At 28:44 Coventry took the lead when straight off the draw Tanaka managed to get in front of goal and shoot through the five hole of Doyle for 2-1 and it was soon 3-1 at 31:02 when Tanaka was behind the goal before he threw the puck in front of goal for Kyle Bochek to score from close range. It could have been worse for the Steelers as Ben Arnt shot went over Doyle onto the crossbar and back of the goalkeeper before Hay cleared it off the line but in the next attack it was 4-1 at 36:06 when Tanaka showed some great skating before playing a ross ice pass to Cowley who had the whole goal to aim at and the Blaze man put it in off the leg of Doyle, Coventry would then go on the man advantage and it would take them long to make it count when at 37:39 as pass from Tait had Tendler all alone at the back door who finished nicely for his second of the game and Coventry would go into the break 5-1 up after an absolutely dreadful middle session by the visitors.
End of the 2nd Period: Coventry Blaze 5–1 Sheffield Steelers

Shots on Goal: Blaze 16–15 Steelers

Sheffield came into the third trying to find some way back in to the game after they only had themselves to blame for the shambles that was the second period and they started it on the 5 on 3 man advantage and came out fast as Fretter shot was just tipped wide of goal and it was then Fretter who found himself all alone in front of Stewart after O’Connor managed to keep the puck in the zone but he couldn’t get his backhanded shot through Stewart and then Sheffield was called for too many men and Coventry got to work on the man advantage and at 48:13 it was that inspirational captain from last season as Goertzen found himself in possession at the top of the faceoff circle and he fired a sweet wrist shot past Doyle for 6-1. Sheffield would pull another goal back at 53:27 when Forney was at the back door to slot the puck past Stewart with ease and Sheffield did have the puck in the net again after Roy had slotted away a rebound but referee Dean Smith had already blown the whistle when he said Stewart had a puck covered up that he cleared didn’t but it would be a dreadful road game for the Steelers and it doesn’t get any easier as they travel to the reigning champions less than 24 hours later.
Shots on Goal: Blaze 6–18 Steelers

FINAL SCORE: Coventry Blaze 6–2 Sheffield Steelers

Boxscore (1st-2nd-3rd-OT-[PIM]-{PP}-S)

Coventry - 0-5-1-0-[14]-{2/5}-29

Sheffield - 1-0-1-0-[10]-{1/7}-54

Coventry Man of the Match: #27 Jereme Tendler
Sheffield Man of the Match: #81 Ben O’Connor

Coventry Points Round Up: - 17 Points
Ben Arnt (0+3), Cale Tanaka (1+2), Kyle Bochek (1+1), Russell Cowley (1+0), Steven Goertzen (1+0), Ashley Tait (0+2), Justin DaCosta (0+2), Jereme Tendler (2+0), Craig Cescon (0+1)

Sheffield Points Round Up: - 3 Points

Michael Forney (1+0), Tyler Mosienko (0+1), Robert Dowd (1+0)

Referee: #26 Dean Smith

Referee: #28 Jonny Liptrott

Linesman: #23 Lee Young

Linesman: #38 Danny Beresford

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Sheffield Winter Classic Junior Exhibition Game

Sheffield Winter Classic – Pre-Match Exhibition Game

On Saturday 27^th December the inaugural Sheffield Winter Classic Game between Spartans & Senators will take place at Ice Sheffield. Prior to this game there will be an exhibition game involving SIHA U14’s players from Stormers & Sabres.

Both teams currently sit at the top of their respective tables with a 100% win record from five games. Sheffield Stormers have scored 46 goals in their opening 5 games with Tyler Nixon the highest goal scorer on the team with Sam Colton, Louis Morgan, William Newcombe & Leon Shaw all have double point figures. Defensively they are sound, conceding just one goal to date for which netminder Curtis Warburton tops the netminding stats with a 98.36 save percentage.

Sheffield Sabres have a good bunch of kids playing for them too and have worked their socks off to be top of the pile at this early stage. Max Hirst & Ben O’Brien boast impressive scoring records; one’s that see them 2^nd & 3^rd in their league’s goal scoring charts. Just like Stormers, Sabres have a good defence and can rely on two excellent netminders in Ben Norton & Charlie Renzi who are currently in the top 5 netminders for their league.  

After such a good start, expectations are high for both teams this season and rightly so. Both teams typify what it’s all about, not just the academy but Sheffield ice hockey generally. We are both pleased and honoured that Stormers & Sabres have agreed to give us an exhibition game before the Sheffield Winter Classic Game…Stormers & Sabres game will face-off at 3.30pm.

Sheffield Winter Classic Game Admission Prices for Academy Players & Parents

Please note that all SIHA players can gain admission to this game free whilst all academy parents are entitled to the concessionary price of £2.

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Weekend Preview - Road/Ferry Trip Anyone?

I've actually had to put some research into writing this week's weekend preview - its amazing what being out of the loop will do for your knowledge.

Anyway, this weekend sees the Steelers on the road - with a trip to Coventry on Saturday (which the club have REALLY been pushing. Anyone know why?) and making the long haul to Belfast on Sunday.

Steelers Team News
I'm sorry if I miss anyone out here.

Jason Hewitt and Dustin Kohn are expected to remain absent with their injury worries. Danny Bois sat out Saturday and Sunday, so it's a wait and see with him.

Saturday - Coventry Blaze
All I can say is that it looks like the Blaze are - more or less - at full strength, sans coach. They're brittle at the moment.
Prediction: Blaze 1 - 4 Steelers

Sunday - Belfast Giants
Let's hope their Continental Cup exertions have worn them out. Unlucky lads. If they come out with a point to prove, I can see it just being a 2 point weekend though.
Prediction: Giants 3 - 2 Steelers

Coverage
Check the @FrozenSteelBlog feed over the weekend for details of updates.

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Steelers BHC Join The Frozen Steel Family

Today, the Steelers announced that they had taken the Rotherham Renegades ball hockey team into the Steelers family. Well, we don't like to be left behind. I'd like to personally welcome the Steelers BHC into the Frozen Steel Family. Here, team members/organisers Joe Hattersley and Tom Merriman give us an introduction to the team and the sport.

The Sheffield Steelers B.H.C are a newly established Ball Hockey team, previously known as the Rotherham Renegades.  As the Renegades, the club enjoyed great success in its first 12 months operating, even securing the Tier 2 national title in May of this year. 

Moving the club forward, an exciting opportunity presented itself to become the Sheffield Steelers Ball Hockey team.  Assistant Captain Dan Blair brought about this exciting venture, through sponsorship of the Steelers Ice Hockey team with Constellation Lighting. 

The aim of the club moving forward is to enter multiple teams into tournaments and league competition and introduce a junior system as Ball Hockey grows in the UK and the South Yorkshire area. This will allow the club to grow and expand the brand of the Sheffield Steelers in not just the local community, but further afield as our teams enter national competitions. 

Ball Hockey in the UK is governed by Ball Hockey UK (BHUK) and is played on a national level with teams competing from across the UK in such areas as London/Cardiff and Newcastle. The Renegades currently compete in the BHUK Central Conference with teams from Nottingham and Sheffield. As well as the league format, teams compete in national, qualifying tournaments throughout the season, culminating in the national finals, which are held at the Queens Road rink, Sheffield in the spring of each year. 

So what is Ball Hockey? 

Ball hockey is essentially Ice Hockey without the ice. The rules are very similar and it’s played out of dedicated rinks like Simply Skate Arena, or normal sports halls. Ball Hockey is also popular across the globe, in places such as mainland Europe and the United States/Canada.  

The Steelers Ball Hockey team will continue to train and play out of Simply Skate Arena in Rotherham.  We currently train on a weekly basis, every Thursday night, 9.00 – 10.30pm.  The current price of a training session is £5, with the first session free of charge.  The main advantages to Ball Hockey is that it’s more accessible, as all you need to start is a stick which cuts down on an obvious expense when looking to start/try a new sport. 

If Ball Hockey sounds like something you’d like to get into then please get in touch via… 

E-Mail: sheffieldsteelersBHC@gmail.com 

Website: www.steelersbhc.wordpress.com 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/SheffieldSteelersBHC 

Twitter: twitter.com/SteelersBHC 

The Steelers Ball Hockey team have a hectic fixture list over the coming months with a local derby this Saturday. Steelers BHC face the Sheffield Knights at home in Cup action, face-off at 4.30pm.  If you’d like to come down and see the team in action and see what Ball Hockey is all about, then entry is free and everyone is welcome. 

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The Duell Report's Weekend To End All Weekends

Well wasn't that a weekend and a half? Such an enjoyable time in Scotland, visiting our purple friends, my heart was breaking again when I had to leave on the Sunday morning. Two cracking games of hockey in Braehead and then back here for a tough encounter. It was a massive ask for both fans and players alike, most of us were running on adrenaline when we arrived back in the House Of Steel Sunday afternoon. Here's how I saw it unfold.

The Walkeden Review - Throwback Thursday 11.01.2014

Hey Guys welcome to another throwback article this time I’m choosing an old game that took place between the Sheffield Steelers and the Coventry Blaze, Hope you enjoy it!

Saturday 11^th January 2014 – Sheffield Steelers v Coventry Blaze @ Motorpoint Arena. Face-off: 7pm, Erhardt Conference/Elite League

Sheffield Steelers – 5
Gord Baldwin (2)
Steven Goertzen
Tim Spencer
Robert Dowd

Coventry Blaze - 4
Kenny Kallstrom
Michael Devin
Shea Guthrie
Adam Henrich

With the Steelers on a good run and the Blaze struggling for points this was turning out to be a must win for the Coventry with the playoffs getting ever closer, Robert Dowd took an early penalty and Blaze would have their first power play of the night and they was looking to get going fast as Frank Doyle was forced into making some early saves but Blaze would score the first goal of the night while on the power play at 2:39 with Olson screening Doyle Kenny Kallstrom would fire one from the blue line. Some fantastic defending by Egener prevented Goertzen levelling the score from the right hash mark, Michael Henrich almost made it 2-0 soon after 1 on 1 with Doyle but the Steelers goalie made the same comfortably. With the Blaze on the power play again the visitors would make it 2-0 on 7:49 as Michael Devin would fire a one timer from the blue line past Doyle and not even a minute later Shea Guthrie made it 3-0 as the Blaze forward go into the Sheffield and forced Doyle into making the first move to fire into the roof of the net and what a first 8 and a half minutes it had been so far for the Coventry Blaze. The Steelers third line was out trying to make something happen but couldn’t beat Zacharias after a good opportunity in front of goal by Hewitt; Stefan Meyer was also making Zacharias work as he can’t get his re-direct past the Blaze netminder. Sheffield would get their first power play of the night as Jeff Legue receives a cross check by Egener and straight of the face-off Sheffield were trying to get on goal but struggled to set-up as they was going up against the best penalty kill in the league but Sheffield would get a 5 on 3 chance and on 17:40 Steelers would pull a goal back as Dowd would win the face-off and Legue would play to Baldwin to rip a slap shot past Zacharias and then not even a minute later still on the power play Sheffield would find themselves down by 1 goal as Goertzen would be played down the right and he skated into the zone in front of goal and slipped the puck past Zacharias for a real captains goal leading by example. Sheffield had a great chance to equalise as Stefan Meyer was all alone next to Zacharias but the Blaze netminder made a great save and Coventry take a 1 goal lead into the break.
End of the 1^st Period: Sheffield Steelers 2–3 Coventry Blaze

Sheffield would start the period on the power play but wouldn’t be able to find an equaliser and Blaze would very quickly end up on their own power play as there is plenty of pushing and shoving in front of Doyle’s goal. It was a much more improved penalty kill than the first period. With 14 minutes left in the period Tim Spencer had a great chance to level the scores but Zacharias somehow saved when Spencer had the majority of the goal to aim for. At the mid-way point of the period Sheffield had Blaze camped in their zone with the 2^nd line Dowd especially skating well looking for an outlet but Ginand blocked the best opportunity. But Sheffield would carry on pressing and a great pass from DiCasmirro would find Sirianni but wouldn’t be able to slot the puck past Zacharias which would be followed by a melee between Meyer and Olsson. Adam Henrich had a good opportunity to score a fourth for the Blaze but Doyle would save from just in front. After a goal fest that was the first period no one would be able to add to the score line despite several power play opportunities for both teams and Coventry would have a one goal lead going into the third period.
End of the 2^nd Period: Sheffield Steelers 2–3 Coventry Blaze

Third Period got underway with the Steelers looking to find an equaliser as quick as possible but the first couple of minutes were extremely scrappy and neither team could get any real offence going as they were both just cancelling each other out. With Shea Guthrie in the box and the Steelers on the power play Sirianni rounded the goal and put the puck into Zacharias before Tim Spencer poked it under the netminder and into the goal for the equaliser just 4 minutes into the third period and that truly made it game on. Soon after Coventry had a big chance to go back ahead as a Blaze forward had the whole goal to choose from but Sheffield managed to somehow clear the zone. Coventry would take the lead again though on 46:38 as Michael Henrich would fire a slap shot from the blue line it would get caught up in the skates of his brother Adam Henrich before he taped it into the open goal, Doyle stood no chance as he had already came to the top of his crease to save the initial shot. The third period was very much end to end with both sides having chances at either end but Sheffield were having large amounts of possession in the Blaze zone giving Mike Zacharias plenty to think about. A few poor defensive errors almost let in Coventry to extend their lead but Frank Doyle made himself big and made sure he had them covered. With 3:23 left in the third period Sheffield found themselves on the power play again with Ryan Ginand in the box for slashing, Jeff Legue has possession of the puck on the blue line and fires one on goal and Gord Baldwin manages to tip it past Zacharias for the equaliser which made it a multi-goal game for the defencemen and a fourth power play goal of the game for the Steelers (When was the last time we could say that). Neither team could find anyway to find a winner so the game went into overtime which meant 4v4.
End of the 3^rd Period: Sheffield Steelers 4-4 Coventry Blaze

Overtime started and there was an early worry for Sheffield as Frank Doyle took a skate to the head off Shea Guthrie but he shook it off and was able to continue playing, first real chance fell to the Steelers as Langlais shot one against the post as Legue was trying to screen Zacharias. Two minutes left in overtime it had been all Sheffield so far without Coventry worrying Doyle at all. With the clock ticking down and Dustin Kohn in possession of the puck in between the circles he played Dowd who skated from zone to zone on the delayed penalty all the way in front of Zacharias before nicely firing low past the Coventry netminder for the game winner on 63:19 to end a fantastic game of Hockey.
Final Score: Sheffield Steelers 5–4 Coventry Blaze OT

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Sheffield Steelkings: The War Begins By Kim McGreal

Hey Guys a friend of the blog Kim McGreal asked us if she wrote this would we put it up for her and obviously being as awesome as we are off-course we did so take a look.

Sheffield Steelkings: The War Begins

Despite it being the off-season for sledge hockey in the UK, it doesn’t mean that the teams are inactive.  The Sheffield Steelkings have been training as often as we can get on the ice and have been working off the ice to enhance the team as a whole.  With our first ever sponsor lined up, and some fantastic promotional material, courtesy of our new member Jake Oakley, the whole team is going from strength to strength in preparation for the new season starting in April.  The one thing we need now though is more time on the ice.

Which is why we’re playing host to Manchester Phoenix sledge team on 5^th December at Ice Sheffield.

Although the two teams faced off briefly once before in a demo at the Steeldogs game, this will be our first full length game since our inception just over 6 months ago.  The Yorkshire/Lancashire rivalry is prevalent within all UK sports, and sledge hockey is no exception.  The two teams might be friends off the ice, but when they’re strapped into their sledges, with nothing but the puck between them, it’s a whole different matter.

As chairman of the Steelkings – and a fan of the sport in general - I’m really looking forward to it.  Manchester are a really good team and have some of the best players in the country.  The Steelkings haven’t been together as a team for long, but this is going to give us a fantastic opportunity to find out how well our forwards and defencemen are working.  It’s also going to be a great chance for our netminder, Bryan, to hone his skills before the GB World Championships in March.

The War of the Roses is still going strong in Sheffield, and this time the Steelkings are hoping to come out on top!

For more information on the Sheffield Steelkings, check out our Facebook page (facebook.com/sheffieldsteelkings) or our Twitter (twitter.com/steelkingssh).

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SIHA Round-up - 22/23.11.2014

This last weekend I had the joy of two road trips for my hockey fix. Up first was a trip to Telford on Saturday with Senators which was followed by Spartans who were in action on Sunday up in Billingham.

Despite a solid team performance Sheffield Senators went down 5-0 to Telford Tigers in the NIHL Laidler Conference on Saturday evening. There was nothing between the two teams in the first period and it looked likely to end 0-0 until Telford broke out from their defensive zone to score on 19.14 through James Smith. It was harsh on Senators in fairness who had more than matched their opponents in every department.

Senators started the period strongly and put Telford under some sustained and intense pressure but lady luck was not shining and with Dennis Bell in goal for Tigers having a blinder Sens could just not find a way back into the game. Tigers were still posing a threat on the counter attack and they made it count on 32.01 when Karol Jets finished off a nice move to make it 2-0 to Telford. Sens will have been disappointed with certain aspects of how the goal came about but they couldn’t do anything about Telford’s next two goals. In what was their best spell of the game Bradley Betteridge on 33.35 and James Smith on 37.56 put Tigers in a winning position at 4-0 but they had to with stand a late rally from a hard working Sens team to keep the score at 4-0.

Credit to Senators, they didn’t give up and once again outshot their opponents but they were thwarted once again by Dennis Bell in Telford’s goal who was pushed all the way for his shutout. As Senators pressed forward for a goal whilst on a powerplay Telford once again broke out and with no defensive cover Mark Hartley was given no chance as Karol Jets & James Smith exchanged passes with Karol Jets finally shooting to score to make it 5-0 timed 52.52. Despite both teams best efforts there was no further scoring to leave an unlucky Senators with no reward for what their hard work deserved. They lost to a good, well organised and well drilled team though in Telford Tigers who made the most of their chances when they came and played to their strengths to win the game and are clearly destined for promotion…Final Score: Telford Tigers 5 Sheffield Senators 0

Sheffield Spartans travelled up to Billingham to face the Stars in the NIHL Moralee Conference and despite a good performance came away empty handed, losing 3-0 in an entertaining game of hockey.

In a scoreless first period neither team managed to stamp their authority on the game but there were plenty of chances. Stubborn defending from both teams ensured the score remained 0-0 with Spartans looking comfortable on the puck and coping with anything Stars could throw at them.

Both teams were in determined mood for the second period and after it being end to end Spartans managed to get on top with some good spells of pressure but they couldn’t get past Flavell in Stars goal who was making some fine saves to thwart Spartans attacks. However, Billingham were still a threat and Spartans were grateful to Brandon Stones on a couple of occasions as he too was making the saves but it was Stars that broke the deadlock with controversial goal. Whilst on the powerplay Spartans lost possession as Stars broke out and scored a short-handed goal that appeared not to go in. Brandon Stones was adjudged to have gloved the puck from behind the line. The goal judge & the linesman agreed so the goal, scored by Cal Davies, stood. Opinion was divided as to whether it had crossed the line or not but the goal stood to see Stars 1-0 in front. Spartans continued to pressurise Stars but couldn’t make any headway to see them go into the final behind by the odd goal.

The final period was full of determination and passion in what was an excellent game of hockey but with the advantage of having a goal lead Stars seemed to have more belief as they pressed for a second. Spartans were pushing Billingham all the way but found themselves 2-0 down in the 54^th minute with a lovely goal from Michael Elder who fired in a cracker of a shot after being set up nicely by Cal Davies. Spartans continued to press for a goal which gave us a few exciting moments as the clock ticked down but it just wasn’t falling for them. Once again they were hit on the counter attack whilst on the powerplay when Andy Munroe nicked in to steel possession then skate down the wing to let one fly past Brandon Stones in the final minute of the game to make it 3-0 to Stars which was also the final score.

A good performance from Spartans but they will be disappointed to have conceded two short-handed goals as well as not making the most of some of the 53 shots they put on Billingham’s goal. However there were many positives to take forward to next week’s game against Manchester Minotaurs. On the night it wasn’t our turn but credit to Billingham, they deserved their win…just! Man of the Match Awards went to Scott Morris for Spartans and James Flavell for Stars…Final Score: Billingham Stars 3 Spartans 0

Earlier in the week Sheffield Greyhounds 16’s B enjoyed a 9-1 home win against local rivals Sutton on Thursday evening. Sheffield Lasers 12’s A put in a good performance to beat Manchester 12-1 on Saturday to continue their fine form.

Sunday proved to be a successful day for all of Sheffield’s academy teams with Sheffield Stormers 14’s A enjoying a comfortable 18-0 win over Telford whilst Steelhawks 18’s A overcame Whitley Bay 10-1.

This was followed by an excellent win for Sheffield Senator over arch rivals Nottingham Lions to bounce back from Saturday’s frustrating loss in Telford.

Sens went into a two goal lead through Tom Humphries & Luke Smith but a Craig Wallis goal for Lions pulled them back into it at 2-1 but Joel Aheran justifiably restored Sens two goal advantage in what was a good team performance from Sens.

They continued to play well but Nottingham were posing more of a threat and their efforts were rewarded when Stuart Parker pulled one back to set up a tense final period. With some suspect refereeing for both teams adding to the tension it became a lot closer and it was set up for an exciting finish when Lions equalised through Slawomir Kasprzak. Senators were not to be outdone though and showed character to go and win the game with Nathan Britton grabbing the winner with just less than 3 minutes left of the game. Nottingham pulled their netminder to give them a numerical advantage but Senators hung on to claim a valuable but deserved victory to cement their place in one of the three promotion places.

Slice

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FSB Statement: Changing Of The Guard

So after a self-imposed absence of nearly a month, I'm back in the game. Kinda.

First off, I have to say a big thank you to Tom for holding the fort in my absense. He's done a superb job, one which leads into the following statement:

While I was away, I realised just how much time I was devoting to the blog, something I do for free with no other benefit than the enjoyment of writing. I toyed with the idea of walking away completely, but then I'd miss the writing.

With that said, I'd like to announce the appointment of Tom Walkeden as Co-Editor. Tom will be overseeing the Steeldogs and Academy focus, so if that is you, Tom is your man from now on. This is in addition to his match reports and game updates.

I will remain as co-editor, but will be focussing on the Shadows, the Steelkings, and the Steelers game previews and wrap-ups. I will also be dedicating less time to the Twitter feed, as I've realised I actually need to leave the house every now and then.

While I was off, we celebrated our first birthday. I had a glass of port and a smug smile of satisfaction on my face. Thanks to everyone who's helped us stumble through to one year of being THE Sheffield Steelers fansite. Thanks to users of the forum, thanks to those who have given us interviews, thanks to anyone who has read an article. Hell, thanks to anyone who has bitterly disagreed with us. Funny that when people fall out with us, our readership goes up.

Here's to the future.

Liam

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Steeldogs Spotlight

The Bradfield Brewery Sheffield Steeldogs welcomed Andre Payette back to the bench as they took on the Swindon Wildcats in a Saturday Night home game.

The first period started at a good pace, with the puck being moved by the teams from end to end although neither team made the net minders earn their keep in the early exchanges. In the middle of the session a minor disagreement between Elliott and Harding led to a period of 4 on 4 which helped open up the game with Korhon having two chances to beat Lyle in quick succession. The game switched up a gear from here and both net minders found themselves called on to make some crucial saves as the forwards began to chip away in the defensive zones. The opening goal of the game came at 19.02 when a puck thrown from the corner went in off Lewis Bell's skate and was credited to Aaron Nell. The Steeldogs were unfortunate to go in at the break, trailing by a single goal.

The second period got underway and the Steeldogs gave a statement of intent early, getting into the Wildcats zone and creating pressure. This was finally rewarded on 39.28 when Steeldogs’ forwards really clicked as Ashley Calvert set Cam Brownley up to beat Lyle at the back post on a feed from Ben Morgan. With the period nearly over, Tom Squires skated smoothly in from the right wing and pulled a move that seemed to fox Lyle but the puck ultimately spun away from the goal. The honours were even at the end of 40 minutes.

The final period started with pace and intensity from both sides and Harding scored at 41.44 after neat work down low which pulled Sedlar out of position. The Steeldogs kept at it but a minute later an odd man break led to Nell dispatching his own rebound off Sedlar to increase the lead to 3-1. Swindon began to shut up shop, as the Steeldogs found it harder and harder to break through the defence and create clear chances. The clock was ticking down and with 2.09 left Malasinski fired home on the power play to end the game as a contest. At the following restart, Pattison and Moore dropped the gloves and both got 2+2 for roughing. On 59:12 Swindon poured salt on Sheffield's wounds with Malasinski scoring his second of the game, making it a 5-1 final score.

Stevie Lyle took the Man of the Match honours for Swindon, with a display of solid net minding, making some game winning saves. Craig Elliott was awarded the Sheffield Steeldogs Man of the Match beers, a solid performance as he continues his return from injury.

We have a double header away weekend coming up, where we lock horns with Swindon Wildcats again and the Bracknell Bees on Sunday. Back at ice Sheffield on Sunday December 7th versus the Guildford Flames.

Pics by @SnapperJakeO

Words @ElGordoSteel

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Match Report: 23.11.2014 - Steelers v Blaze EC/EIHL

Sunday 23^rd November 2014 – Sheffield Steelers (12-4-0) v Coventry Blaze (8-9-0) @ Motorpoint Arena. Face-off: 5pm, Erhardt Conference/Elite League

Two points out of four so far for the Steelers as they travelled back home for game three in three nights looking to finish the weekend on a high

Sheffield Steelers – 3
Michael Forney – 1^st PP
Cullen Eddy – 1^st
Mathieu Roy – OT PP

Coventry Blaze – 2
Steven Goertzen (2) 1^st, 1^st

The game got underway with Frank Doyle in goal for the Steelers and Brian Stewart who publicly said he was injured the night before in between the pipes for the visitors, the game started off in a very slow manner with no real chances early on for either team, there was a lot of neutral zone hockey. The first shot came from the home side as Jay Latulippe shot one from the blue line into the glove off Stewart and it was the home team that got the first power play of the night as Craig Cescon was called for holding of the stick and Sheffield got to work, they had early chances through Phillips and Roy and on 6:52 Steelers took the lead when Fretter played it to Forney who fired a slap shot from the right of Stewart over his left shoulder for a 1-0 lead. Straight after the goal the Steelers were straight back on the powerplay after bad hit on Roy by Bochek but Blaze would kill the penalty and just after they killed Sarich from the right hand boards threw one on goal and it was Roy who just tipped it over Stewart but then Blaze went up the other end to level the game after Doyle made the save from a shot by Ross Venus and it was Doyle who swiped the puck off the goal line and former Steeler Steven Goertzen scored the rebound timed at 10:14. Both teams weren’t looking themselves during the period as both teams were making sloppy plays but still were finding ways to attack but both netminders were in good form but at 14:17 Sheffield retook the lead after Forney played to Eddy to the left of Stewart and fired it into the net of Stewart for 2-1 but in the very next attack Coventry levelled the game again timed at 14:43 after some fantastic skating by Venus he made a smart part across Doyle for an easy tap in for Goertzen for his second of the game and the teams would be all square at the break.

End of the 1st Period: Sheffield Steelers 2–2 Coventry Blaze

Shots on Goal: Steelers 9-10 Blaze

Second period was massively controlled by the Steelers as they only allowed the Blaze two shots but Brian Stewart would stand on his head to denying chance after chance especially during the penalty kill when it was Forney  who made a great move in the Coventry zone and Stewart saved from in front and Colton Fretter missed the open goal as he shot just over and not long after Sarich would break down the right hand side he’d pull the move with Stewart down and beaten but his back hand would just go over the crossbar. Coventry did get Sheffield camped in their zone but only managed to get on shot off during the spell as Steven Chalmers was having a great shift. Sheffield would break 2v0 with the top two point scorers in the league as Forney and Roy would exchange passes but Stewart would make an outstanding glove save to deny the Steelers the lead and then soon after Cale Tanaka would find himself on the breakaway but Doyle would make a great pad save and Baldwin would block the follow up to ensure that both teams are level going into the second intermission.
End of the 2nd Period: Sheffield Steelers 2–2 Coventry Blaze

Shots on Goal: Steelers 12–2 Blaze

Third period would get underway in a physical manner as Cullen Eddy skated into the Coventry zone he forced a body save out of Brian Stewart and got a glove in the face by Cescon for his trouble but he didn’t let that bother him as he carried on skating hard. Coventry got their only power play of the game in the third and Ryan O’Marra almost gave the visitors the lead where tried to go around the goal and Frank Doyle made a spectacular leg save to deny him at the back post. Both teams were giving it all they’ve got but both teams looked tired, Steelers were on their third game in three nights and Blaze were coming in on the back of a humiliating defeat by the Devils the night before. Things got nasty when there was a coming together between Eddy and DaCosta in front of Stewart and then Bochek was third man in but he wouldn’t receive third man in. Eddy and Bochek both got two minutes for roughing and five minutes for fighting and DaCosta got a roughing penalty which gave the Steelers another powerplay attempt but they couldn’t convert as Stewart was standing on his head to keep out the home side but the game would go to overtime.
End of Regulation: Sheffield Steelers 2-2 Coventry Blaze
Shots on Goal: Steelers 10–5 Blaze

Overtime got underway and Rory Rawlyk was called for a slash on Mosienko with just 10 seconds gone which there was no need for him to do and Sheffield got to work circling well in the Blaze zone before O’Connor firing a shot on goal which Stewart dropping the original shot and Mathieu Roy was there to fire home the rebound from close range for the game winner timed at 60:32 to give Sheffield the extra point and send them top of the league.
Shots on Goal: Steelers 2-0 Blaze

FINAL SCORE: Sheffield Steelers 3–2 Coventry Blaze OT

Boxscore (1st-2nd-3rd-OT-[PIM]-{PP}-S)

Sheffield  - 2-0-0-1-[9]-{2/5}-33

Coventry - 2-0-0-0-[17]-{0/1}-17

Sheffield Man of the Match: #15 Mathieu Roy
Coventry Man of the Match: #41 Brian Stewart

Sheffield Points Round Up: - 8 Points
Cullen Eddy (1+0), Michael Forney (1+2), Mathieu Roy (1+1), Colton Fretter (0+1), Ben O’Connor (0+1)

Coventry Points Round Up: - 6 Points

Russell Cowley (0+1), Steven Goertzen (2+0), Ryan O’Marra (0+1), Ross Venus (0+2)

Referee: #14 James Kavanagh

Referee: #27 Mike Hicks

Linesman: #22 Paul Staniforth

Linesman: #38 Danny Beresford

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Match Report: 22.11.2014 - Clan v Steelers EIHL

Saturday 22^nd November 2014 – Braehead Clan (11-6-1) v Sheffield Steelers (12-3-0) @ Braehead Arena. Face-off: 7pm, Elite League

After winning 2-0 the night before to go top of the league, Sheffield were in action against Braehead again as game two of three for the weekend.

Braehead Clan – 5
Matt Keith - 2nd PP

Stefan Meyer - 3rd

Neil Trimm - 3rd PP

Derek Roehl - 3rd

Matt Haywood - 3rd ENG

Sheffield Steelers – 3
Darrell Hay - 2nd

Robert Dowd - 2nd

Jay Latulippe - 3rd

Clan started the game fast and were looking to get of their three game losing streak and they thought they was ahead early on as Frank Doyle performed a fantastic save to deny Braehead of the goal line and not long after that Trimm played it to Meyer who tipped it on goal and Clan thought it was in but Doyle had it comfortably in his glove. Sheffield came close early doors when Baldwin sent a cross ice pass to Forney who threw one in front of goal and Roy was inches from tipping it past Jones. Braehead then got two opportunities on the 5 on 3 in a row but some fantastic penalty killing by the Steelers was on show keeping them to the edges but it was hard for the visitors as they struggled to get a line change. There would then be several penalties called and while 4v4 Roehl found himself on the breakaway but Doyle saved well with the legs pads but it was offside. It was a very stop start period but was very entertaining with both Netminders making some fantastic saves but it would be all square at the break.

End of the 1st Period: Braehead Clan 0–0 Sheffield Steelers

Shots on Goal: Clan 10-7 Steelers

Second period got underway and Braehead were on the attack early on at Doyle took a shot straight into the body, Clan killed an early penalty and with it back to even strength at 24:05 Sheffield opened the scoring when Mosienko turned and gave it to Hay in between the circles who shot brilliantly over the left shoulder of Jones for 1-0. Braehead carried on coming but Sheffield's defence was looking up to the job firstly when Esders was trying for one in on the doorstep and then Clan broke 3v2 and Doyle saved of Keith before Salters saw his shot blocked on the line by Hay or O'Connor. Steelers came close on the power play when O'Connor saw a wicked slap shot come of the blocker of Jones. Doyle was outstanding for a second night in a row keeping out Keith, Esders and Haywood I'm a matter of minutes with the clock ticking down there was a bad hit by Roehl on Fretter and Mathieu Roy didn't hesitate in jumping in to protect his team mate and he would receive 2+2 for his trouble and Roehl would get 2+10 for checking from behind and it would put Clan on the man advantage and straight of the draw it was Matt Keith who tipped it past Doyle from in front to level the game at 38:28. But it didn't take long for the Steelers to restore the lead when at 39:30 Jones saved of a Steeler and O'Connor made a great move to pass to Dowd who turned and fired from the point to take the Steelers into the break with a 2-1 lead.
End of the 2nd Period: Braehead Clan 1–2 Sheffield Steelers

Shots on Goal: Clan 7–17 Steelers

After a slight delay to the third period after a few Ice repairs Braehead were soon tied when Stefan Meyer skated down the right and his back hand very luckily crept past Doyle at his near post at 41:30. With just 12 minutes left in the game Braehead found themselves on the power play again and at 48:06 made it count when Neil Trimm finished off at the back door for 3-2. There was then another incident when a Eddy pushed Salters of Doyle and then Doyle had his gloves and helmet of ready to fight and Eddy was interested and only received a 10 minute misconduct when it should have been 2+10 and then Eddy and Latulippe somehow ended up in the box and it put us on a 5 on 3 penalty kill when it shouldn't have been and despite killing it we didn't have our players back in position and Derek Roehl had an easy back door tap in for 4-2 at 52:25. Into the last two minutes Frank Doyle was pulled for an extra attacker to try and get back into the game and an Eddy mistake gave the puck to Haywood who shot into the empty net at 58:57 for 5-2 but it was Sheffield who ended the scoring with 5 seconds left on the clock a Clan giveaway let in Latulippe one on one and he coolly slotted past Jones for end the game in a 5-3 defeat, when Latulippe scored it forces a reaction off Chris Frank who was having a pop at the Steelers man thought it was very sportsmanlike myself. So two points out of four from Braehead and we travel back to the arena to face Coventry to try and end the weekend on a high.

Shots on Goal: Clan 10–11 Steelers

FINAL SCORE: Braehead Clan 5–3 Sheffield Steelers

Boxscore (1st-2nd-3rd-OT-[PIM]-{PP}-S)

Braehead - 0-1-4-0-[34]-{2/8}-27

Sheffield  - 0-2-1-0-[22]-{0/5}-35

Braehead Man of the Match: #14 Derek Roehl
Sheffield Man of the Match: #81 Ben O'Connor

Braehead Points Round Up: - 13 Points
Jamie Fritsch (0+1), Scott Aarssen (0+1), Matt Keith (1+0), Stefan Meyer (1+0), Matt Haywood (1+0), Derek Roehl (1+0), Lee Esders (0+1), Neil Trimm (1+1), Leigh Salters (0+1), Tristan Harper (0+1), Scott Pitt (0+2)

Sheffield Points Round Up: - 5 Points

Jay Latulippe (1+0), Jonathan Phillips (0+1), Darrell Hay (1+0), Robert Dowd (1+0), Ben O'Connor (0+1)

Referee: #16 Toby Craig

Referee:

Linesman: #47 Gregor Mizen

Linesman: #18 Alan Ward

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Match Report: 21.11.2014 - Clan v Steelers EIHL

Friday 21^st November 2014 – Braehead Clan (11-5-1) v Sheffield Steelers (11-3-0) @ Braehead Arena. Face-off: 7:30pm, Elite League

Game 1 of three of the weekend was the 1st of our double header with Braehead as Sheffield could go top with a win.

Braehead Clan – 0

Sheffield Steelers – 2
Mathieu Roy - 2nd PP

Colton Fretter - 2nd

The game got underway and it was a very fast start by both teams when at first Mosienko threw one in front of goal and Dowd couldn't quiet reach it and then at the other end it was the turn of former Steeler Stefan Meyer as he had Doyle scrambling and it was Haywood who somehow got a puck through the crease and another former Steeler Lee Esders missed for an easy tap in. Clan were skating fast and hard and it was the home team that got the first man advantage of the game as Forney was called for slashing but Sheffield would soon end up on their own power play but both Netminders were on great form and new boy Danny Bois was impressing as he was for checking well and came close to opening the scoring as Hill rounded the net and teed up the new Steeler mans but he couldn't get his shot any further than Jones's body. An end to end period would end all square but there was a coming together on the buzzer with Danny Bois involved with Fitzgerald as the Steelers man pulled him of his team mate the Steelers man hit him with two punches before Bois dropped a glove, hit him with another one before his second glove flew off before putting him on the Ice with a final punch in a fight that Bois didn't look interested in having and the new Steelers man missed out the rest of the game and Fitzgerald was given a game misconduct before later getting a two game ban.

End of the 1st Period: Braehead Clan 0–0 Sheffield Steelers

Shots on Goal: Clan 8-15 Steelers

Second period started 4v4 after the incident in the first period but Clan were soon on the power play which was very quickly 5 on 3 but Sheffield killed well as Braehead were getting frustrated as their shots were getting blocked and the Steelers were keeping them to the edges well. After about five minutes on the penalty kill after several penalties Sheffield got their own Powerplay as another former Steeler a Chris Frank for called for high sticks and Sheffield got to work and on 30:56 the visitors opened the scoring after Sarich's shot from the blue line is saved by the leg pads of Jones and Roy picked up the rebound to slot into the open goal for 1-0. Clan wasn't out the game though and were getting chances through Leigh Salters, Stefan Meyer and Ryan Kavanagh who impressed me a lot all weekend. With the clock ticking down in the second period Sheffield extended their lead to 2-0 on 35:39 when it was Colton Fretter who got the decisive touch from Baldwin to beat Kyle Jones from in front, but Sheffield took a two goal lead into the break despite Pitt and Meyer going very close in the dying stages but Doyle saved well.

End of the 2nd Period: Braehead Clan 0–2 Sheffield Steelers

Shots on Goal: Clan 15–14 Steelers

Final period got underway and Sheffield went very close as Cullen Eddy chose to pass when he should have probably shot, the next best chance fell to the Clan while shorthanded they broke out 2v1 and Frank Doyle made a fantastic save to keep his shutout intact. Sheffield were then having a comfortable spell as they had 2+2 Powerplay and Kyle Jones was standing on his head as he saved fantastically of everything that was thrown at him. Keith then had a golden chance and somehow didn't score from just in front and Doyle must have got something on it to keep him out. Kyle Jones was doing the same at the other end when Robert Dowd was in possession behind the goal and he played Mosienko who forced a great glove save out of the Clan netminder. With 1:37 left in the game Mosienko was called for tripping and Kyle Jones was pulled but they couldn't break through and Sheffield held on for a 2-0 lead and Frank Doyle had his first shutout of the season
Shots on Goal: Clan 7–10 Steelers

FINAL SCORE: Braehead Clan 0–2 Sheffield Steelers

Boxscore (1st-2nd-3rd-OT-[PIM]-{PP}-S)

Braehead - 0-0-0-0-[47]-{0/9}-30

Sheffield  - 0-2-0-0-[27]-{1/8}-39

Braehead Man of the Match: #14 Derek Roehl
Sheffield Man of the Match: #1 Frank Doyle

Braehead Points Round Up: - 0 Points

Sheffield Points Round Up: - 6 Points

Gord Baldwin (0+1), Mathieu Roy (1+1), Rodney Sarich (0+1), Colton Fretter (1+0), Ben O'Connor (0+1)

Referee: #19 Rab Cowan

Referee:

Linesman: #47 Gregor Mizen

Linesman: #18 Alan Ward

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Weekend Preview - Clan (a) Blaze (h)

Four point weekend last weekend and it doesn’t get much better than that especially when your playing the top two teams. This weekend we make the trip up to Scotland for a weekend in Glasgow as we face the Braehead Clan on Friday and Saturday before a trip back to Sheffield to face the Coventry Blaze at the Arena on Sunday.

Sheffield will be at full strength this weekend as new signing Danny Bois comes into the squad for his debut as Gerad Adams finally got Morency’s replacement, Sheffield are expected to be without Jason Hewitt who picked up a leg injury on Sunday and is expected to be out for 4 to 6 weeks and Import defenceman Dustin Kohn is also expected to miss 2 to 3 weeks through injury. Ferrara will most probably be with Peterborough who plays Milton Keynes and Telford on Saturday and Sunday. So were down two players for our three game this weekend and let’s be honest it’s going to be three tough games.

Braehead Clan 
We take on the Braehead Clan twice this weekend on Friday and Saturday up in Glasgow which both promise to be good games as both teams have had a fantastic start to the season. Braehead are as they were last weekend and are full strength with no injuries for their two games against us this weekend as I’m sure they’ll be looking for a bit of revenge after Sunday.

Coventry Blaze 
Blaze who parted ways with Head Coach Marc LeFebvre on Wednesday travel to the Arena to take on the Steelers on Sunday and will be without the injured Derek Lee and Mike Egener as former Steeler Steven Goertzen and Egener take control of Coventry as they look for a replacement for LeFebvre.

This Weekend we have Alan and Tom up in Glasgow and then back at the Arena so follow @FrozenSteelMNL and @TomWalkeden for your updates for all three games as they’ll have every period covered for you.

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