Six weeks in and people are starting to find out what teams are hot and which ones are cold. It's been another week full of surprises, and none more so than last night (Wednesday) which I will touch upon later. It's time for The Elite Report.
Well one coach who is still smiling away after another maximum haul is Andrew Lord of Cardiff. Lord is certainly, bar the hammering in Sheffield, proving that his rookie coach season last year is no flash in the pan. Wins at Fife, where others have come unstuck before, and then a comprehensive win back home in the BBT certainly puts him at the top of the pile when it comes to form. The team is clicking everywhere, and could this be their time? It's certainly looking good in South Wales at the moment.
Another guy who will feel more happier is Ryan Finnerty of the Braehead Clan. Five points out of a possible six in various guises is not to be sniffed. Most coaches would give their right arm for that over three nights of action, and to think the dropped point came courtesy of a shootout loss in Dundee. However will the loss of an injured Ric Jackman from their blue line prove crucial? Time will determine that.
Wanting to have the wheels stuck back on is Paul Thompson. After triumphing in a hard fought battle against the Panthers on the Saturday, Steelers crashed 5-1 in the Principality on the Sunday. Three goals in six minutes, and a Joey Martin treble at that, killed off any visiting hope despite Jeff Legue scoring his 249th EIHL goal. Then just last night, those wheels really came loose with an unexpected defeat at Ice Sheffield to an Edinburgh Capitals team missing players left, right and centre. Those in orange will be hoping this blip is just one of those.
Talking about the Caps, I'm actually pleased for them. They are showing now that they are a team not to be taken too lightly. A split home and home series with the Storm over the weekend, and then that last night. Riley Emmerson must be so proud of his charges, and he knows he has a goalie in Carsen Chubak who will give them a chance to win every night. Omar Pacha is similarly building slowly in Manchester but they need a decent run of wins to actually catch fire so to speak.
Panthers are still there or thereabouts, and can never be discounted especially if they go on a streak of wins. Corey Neilson's team saw a run of form derailed as stated above at Sheffield, but they got back to winning ways with a good home win against the Flyers. Despite being short on numbers on the blue line, and also Robert Farmer missing too, Neilson knows his side have the offence to destroy most teams whilst Miika Wiikman continues to prove that there is definitely life after Craig Kowalski.
Dundee seem to me to be a team that wins one and then loses one. It's still a marked improvement from last season but like many others, they need to be more consistent with entries under the W column as that ultimately determine where they will finish this season. They're doing alright though for Marc LeFebvre. Fife. on the other hand, need wins as a blank weekend certainly leaves them without a win in four which needs addressing. I'm sure both Todd Dutiaume and Danny Stewart will be very keen to arrest this slide before it threatens to become a bigger problem.
This review cannot fail to end without discussing the home and home games between Coventry and Belfast. Blaze snapped their horrendous run on the Saturday with a shootout win in the SSE Arena or the Odyssey to everyone else bar SSE. Yet Sunday came and what a game these two sides served up. Giants go 4-1 up before 9 minutes had been played then Blaze fire back with 3 unanswered to level matters at 4-4 after period one. Two more quick goals at the start of the second sees Blaze lead 6-4 only for Giants to then land 3 unanswered of their own to lead 7-6 with one period left. Giants eventually squeak home 10-8 at the end of an incredible 60 minutes. Not good for a coach's heart rate but brilliant entertainment for those in SkyDome to witness it. Giants hat-trick hero Mike Radja will also be relieved, imagine if the score had been in reverse...
I'll leave this round up on a sad note. We all know those stripeys aren't perfect, far from it, but what happened in Kirkcaldy post game has definitely left a bitter taste in most hockey fans' mouths. Alan "Toby" Craig returned to his car after the game and found it had been "keyed". Toby does not deserve this. I just hope they find the culprit(s) involved, and they are home fans then Fife do the honourable thing and bar them from the FIA. It's just plain disgusting. The true hockey family is behind you Toby. Rant over!
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