Well things have developed here on "The Duell Report". No longer will I be talking Steelers, that has gone over to the new "FrozCast" which we've just gone live with. Instead I'll be here every other week talking EIHL. Bit of a change, but I think it's the way forward. So not only do you get to hear my views vocally but you still get my musings on here in the written form. So away we go....
One thing that is abundantly clear, this season's EIHL title race is one of the closest ones in recent times. First Steelers go into a good place, then a slip over late December-early January puts them back, Clan take over and now are having a wee stutter of their own. As we go into the last couple of months, the destination of the Monteith Bowl is unknown entity. Will it head to Braehead for the first time ever? Or will it go back to Nottingham or Sheffield for the first time since 2013 or 2011 respectively?
Sorry to all Giants and Devils supporters but I fear your title hopes have bitten the dust. However, you have played your part in one of the keenly contested battles ever.
At the time of writing, Clan sit atop with a slender one point advantage over Nottingham with Sheffield an additional two points adrift. The worrying thing for Clan supporters and management alike is that those two; both have games in hand - Panthers with one, Steelers with two. So theoretically, if both won these then Steelers would lead on regulation wins from Panthers with Clan a single point behind. But as we all know, hockey isn't really that simple....if it was then we would have nothing to talk about!
So if the league stayed like it is now, these would be the play-off quarter final match-ups:
Braehead v Coventry
Nottingham v Hull
Sheffield v Fife
Belfast v Cardiff
Some quite tasty ones there, Coventry against Braehead and Belfast playing Cardiff. But that's if everything stays as it is, and you can possibly assume we will have more twists and turns in the EIHL before the final weekend of the regular season is done and dusted.
Talking about Coventry, they didn't half upset the proverbial apple cart the other week in the Challenge Cup didn't they. Everyone was expecting Clan to play Cardiff in that semi-final but one of the best performances since Chuck Weber arrived in Coventry saw the Midlands side win 3-1 on the road to tie it up at 4-4 and prove victorious in the ensuing shoot-out.
At the bottom, Dundee seem to have had the classic "After the Lord Mayor's Show" type of season and are eight points adrift of the final play-off spot which is in stark comparison to last season when they surprised all and sundry: leading the EIHL at one stage early in the season if I recall correctly. Edinburgh have lost form and have slipped into ninth; allowing Blaze to overcome them. They will need more 60 minute performances like the second and third periods against Sheffield if they are to make the post-season. I don't think neither Stars and Capitals will make it which is good news if you're a fan of Hull or the Blaze. But hey, I've been proven wrong before.
The Challenge Cup semi-finals start in a couple of weeks, and if Coventry play like they did at Braehead then they could surprise Cardiff: the win last night (Sunday) will have given them a massive psychological boost. Then in the other semi-final, the biggest heavyweights go head to head again (they will have played each other 12 times this season before the play-offs). Nottingham will relish the first leg being away from the NIC as they seemingly have Sheffield's number this season. Steelers on the other hand, know their "A" game is required to go into the second leg with a chance to win their first Challenge Cup since 2003: when they ironically beat the team from the Lace City.
I'll be back with another EIHL review next week or in a fortnight; depending how my brain feels after Sunday night in the principality - ironically drinking Brain's bitter! Oh the irony there....
So if the league stayed like it is now, these would be the play-off quarter final match-ups:
Braehead v Coventry
Nottingham v Hull
Sheffield v Fife
Belfast v Cardiff
Some quite tasty ones there, Coventry against Braehead and Belfast playing Cardiff. But that's if everything stays as it is, and you can possibly assume we will have more twists and turns in the EIHL before the final weekend of the regular season is done and dusted.
Talking about Coventry, they didn't half upset the proverbial apple cart the other week in the Challenge Cup didn't they. Everyone was expecting Clan to play Cardiff in that semi-final but one of the best performances since Chuck Weber arrived in Coventry saw the Midlands side win 3-1 on the road to tie it up at 4-4 and prove victorious in the ensuing shoot-out.
At the bottom, Dundee seem to have had the classic "After the Lord Mayor's Show" type of season and are eight points adrift of the final play-off spot which is in stark comparison to last season when they surprised all and sundry: leading the EIHL at one stage early in the season if I recall correctly. Edinburgh have lost form and have slipped into ninth; allowing Blaze to overcome them. They will need more 60 minute performances like the second and third periods against Sheffield if they are to make the post-season. I don't think neither Stars and Capitals will make it which is good news if you're a fan of Hull or the Blaze. But hey, I've been proven wrong before.
The Challenge Cup semi-finals start in a couple of weeks, and if Coventry play like they did at Braehead then they could surprise Cardiff: the win last night (Sunday) will have given them a massive psychological boost. Then in the other semi-final, the biggest heavyweights go head to head again (they will have played each other 12 times this season before the play-offs). Nottingham will relish the first leg being away from the NIC as they seemingly have Sheffield's number this season. Steelers on the other hand, know their "A" game is required to go into the second leg with a chance to win their first Challenge Cup since 2003: when they ironically beat the team from the Lace City.
I'll be back with another EIHL review next week or in a fortnight; depending how my brain feels after Sunday night in the principality - ironically drinking Brain's bitter! Oh the irony there....
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