It's here, and Christmas on the hockey calendar can only mean one thing: the home and home games against our nearest and dearest - the Panthers of Nottingham. Both ourselves and Nottingham will probably see their highest league attendances of the season in these two games as fans gear up for a couple of potential Christmas crackers.
With both sides chasing league leaders Cardiff Devils hard, the outcomes could be pretty significant indeed.
Both sides go into the games having released an import recently. Panthers released defenceman Kyle Hardy after just 10 games in the black and gold, whilst Steelers stunned everybody in the Elite League by releasing netminder Tyler Plante. Hardy failed to deliver what was expected from him according to what we have heard on the hockey grapevine whilst Plante was surprisingly axed after making a full recovery from an injury that had him sidelined for the last two months.
The decision involving the latter has sent shockwaves around the league with fans nationwide surprised at it. But what is done is now done.
These two main protagonists last faced each other just over a month ago in the NIC. Panthers came into that one off the back of a superb 7-3 win in Cardiff, whilst Steelers had had that amazing 9-8 win after penalties in Braehead. Few gave Steelers a chance, but they set about the Panthers like as if their collective lives depended on the result and were 4-1 ahead after 40 minutes play. Panthers mounted a comeback but couldn't never get back on level terms: Robert Dowd's empty netter (his second goal of the contest) secured the points would be going back up the M1.
Both teams also recently have wobbles, and it will be the team that settles the best whom will come out the best in these games. Form goes out of the window in any Steelers-Panthers game and this will be no exception whatsoever. Panthers will be hoping starting netminder Miika Wiikman will be fit to return, whilst Marek Pinc will hope to continue his upturn in form and statistics wise in the opposite cage. But it ain't all about these guys...
Special teams will also have an important role to play too. Panthers have one of the best powerplays in the Elite League and in both David Ling and David Clarke: a couple of guys who can really do some damage. Steelers have a more than decent penalty kill of their own so if they can nulify this then it might be down to which one is the best at full strength and both sides match up well against the other in this respect.
Personally I would not be surprised if either, or both, game(s) go beyond the normal 60 minute mark.
Prediction Time: Steelers to take game one 4-2 at the Arena, Panthers to take game two in the NIC 3-2 after overtime.
How do you see it?
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