Steelers and Flames both Dodge Bullets to Make Big Gains in Title Race

UK Round UP 18^th December

Sunday’s matches in both EIHL and the EPL had a common theme. All the teams that were in action were looking to make big gains in the league however that was not exactly the case.

Elite League

Sheffield Steelers 6 Fife Flyers 5 (AOT)

With both the Belfast Giants and the Nottingham Panthers not in action it was an excellent opportunity for the Steelers to make up some ground in the title race.

After a scoreless first period however it was the home side that started the scoring. Goals from Dutiaume and Hartmanis came in between a Siddell brace that stunned the defending champions into a 4 – 1 deficit at the second intermission.

It was a frantic start to the third period as Sheffield was determined not to let the game slip away. Luke Fulgham scored in the fourth minute of the period to bring the Steelers to within 2 goals but Hartmanis scored 3 seconds later to restore the lead to 3. Birnstall then netted for the visitors to cut the lead again some 15 seconds later. Fulgham’s second of the night in the eighth minute cut the gap to 1 and set up a grandstand finish in Kirkcaldy.

Jeff Legue finally found the net for the Steelers with 2 minutes to go to tie up the scores. The hometown hearts were then broken in overtime as Mark Thomas scored his second overtime winner of the season.

Fife has once again shown that they can compete with every team in the EIHL. However they will need to turn those nearly wins into points or will be left with nothing to show for it come April. Although the signing of Dan Ceman could prove to be the extra edge they need to get to that next step. Sheffield on the other hand has taken a big in road into the lead of the Belfast Giants but did it by dodge a big bullet.

Braehead Clan 7 Dundee Stars 1

The Stars returned home to Dundee for them play their first must win game under new coach Brent Hughes.

It was a tight first period that saw the Clan take a 2 – 1 advantage but which the Stars were well and truly in contention. The second by contrast was all one-way traffic. The Clan scoring through Galbraith, Walker, Jorgensen and Krestanovich to take the game by the horns and a commanding 6 -1 lead.

All that was left in the third period was for Jade Galbraith to complete his hat trick and leave the Stars just two points of the bottom.

This was a must win game for the Stars who had been showing an improvement under Brent Hughes. However this was another big defeat in a game they had a good chance of winning and leaves their playoff hopes in shatters once more.

Whilst the Clan are now in a good position to take that spot as Scotland’s number one team again.

Cardiff Devils 5 Hull Stingrays 3

The Stingrays knew that 2 points would be needed tonight to boost their playoff hopes by taking advantage of results around them.

It was the Stingrays that started well with Tendler and Osman replying after Kenton Smith had given the Devils the lead for a 2 -1 score at the first intermission. Hill’s equaliser for the Devils was than cancelled out by Tendler’s second that kept the Stingrays in charge.

But it was a third period to forget for the home team. The Devils dominated the play as MacRae, Frank and Matzka turned the game on its head.

The Devils pick up all 4 points from this weekend and will be delighted to be doing the small things right. It was disappointment for the Stingrays who miss out on the chance to create a dominating gap in the race for the final playoff spot.

Edinburgh Capitals 2 Coventry Blaze 7

Coventry returned home to the Skydome looking to give another large crowd something to cheer and that they did with a powerful display against a lacklustre Capitals outfit.

The win keeps the Blaze in forth spot in the league table whilst the Capitals slip further behind the Clan in the race to be Scotland’s number one team.

English Premier League

With the top 3 all getting big wins on Saturday night they were all looking for a repeat performance. However they were in for a big surprise. Slough who had beaten Manchester 9 – 0 on Saturday went down to a Phantoms side that is showing a big up turn in its form. Meanwhile Manchester hosted Milton Keynes at the Ice Dome and survived a come back from the Lightning to take the points and show what they are capable of on their day. This left the league leaders with the opportunity to open a bigger gap at the top against the same 

Bracknell team they had beaten 8 – 0 the night before.

The Flames however came up against a Bees team intent on revenge and need a late equaliser to force overtime. The leagues took full advantage of a second chance at the win and took it on penalties to move 4 points clear at the top of the EPL.

The EPL’s other game saw the Wildcats pick up 2 points with a dominating display against bottom side Telford.

Results

Swindon Wildcats 8 Telford Tigers 2

Milton Keynes Lightning 2 Manchester Phoenix 4

Slough Jets 3 Peterborough Phantoms 4

Guildford Flames 4 Bracknell Bees 3 (APS)

Neil Tucker

www.bluelinehockeyblog.wordpress.com

GetRealHockey is Looking for Business and Affiliate Partnerships

Our team has been building a solid readership and we continue to pursue a monetization strategy.  We are planning the launch of GetRealNHLVip.com and we expect to have this site up in January.  The strategy for the VIP site will be to offer VIP experiences to NHL fans.  These experiences could include Dinner in the Sky, golf tournaments, and Alumni Cruises.   If your business wants to be involved in this effort; please email us @ getrealhockey@gmail.com.  

We are also entertaining possible affiliate relationships.  If you have a business that could offer a product to GetRealHockey readers; please email us @ getrealhockey@gmail.com.  We would be pleased to speak to all kinds of groups.  As it stands now we get 3000 visitors per day and our Alexa.com ranking keeps climbing.  We think this is a great opportunity which will only get better.

The Get Real Guide to The Cardiff Devils: 25 Years of Hockey History

Home: Cardiff Arena

Colours: Red, Black, White

Founded: 1986

The Cardiff Devils are a team that has become one of the most famous in British ice hockey for their actions on and off the ice as well as everything in between. They are a team that has been at the top level for one of the longest periods of any team in the UK and have never been far from the headlines. Headlines that have included bench brawls leading to games being abandoned, arena problems, league titles, financial problems,  injuries and the world’s longest winning streak.

Founded in 1986 the Devils played their first home game 25 years ago this week at the then new Welsh National Ice Rink. Whilst the WINR maybe gone the Devils quickly rose through the ranks of the old promotion/ relegation system of British ice hockey to reach the Premier Division for their fourth season and went on to win the league that same season.  That win was backed up by the play off title when they beat Murrayfield after penalty shots at Wembley Arena in one of the most famous televised games in British ice hockey history. That league title was followed up two more in 1993 and 1994.

The high flying Devils and their large bank balance were one of the driving forces behind the biggest major change in British ice hockey when in 1996 they helped to form a new professional, no import restriction Superleague. The new league was then won by the Devils that first season.

However that success and philosophy would not last as the cash flow stopped in 2001 and the team had to be reformed but this time on a tighter budget and in the second tier British National League. But a return to the top flight was not to be far off as the Superleague disbanded the Cardiff Devils became founder members of the Elite League in 2003. This was not to be the end of the troubles for the Devils however as in 2006 the Welsh National Ice Rink was closed and demolished without a new rink being opened. In February 2007 the new temporary Cardiff Arena was opened and the Devils returned to Cardiff to complete the 2006-2007 season.

The Devils are yet to win a league title in the Elite League era but have been a top team winning the Challenge Cup in 2006 and the Knockout Cup in 2007 as well as being playoff runner ups in 2005, 2010 and 2011. The team also broke the world record for the longest winning streak during the 2010 – 2011 season with 22 competitive wins and 21 league wins.

As for the future the Devils remain competitive if lacking the facilities and money to make the final step to become league winners every season. But with consultants on a new permanent arena on going the future does look positive.

Links

Club Website - http://www.cardiffdevils.com/

Fans Forum - http://the-inferno.co.uk/

Neil Tucker

www.bluelinehockeyblog.wordpress.com

While the Steelers Away the Cats Need to Play - Belfast Giants Lead the Winners

UK Round Up 26^th November

Elite League

With the champion Sheffield Steelers away in Denmark in their Continental Cup the rest of the Elite League looked to make some ground over them in the title race.

Braehead Clan 4 Belfast 6

With the Steelers missing from the Elite League this weekend the Belfast Giants knew that a 4 point weekend would pile the pressure on the reigning championships. It almost did not go to plan early on  Saturday. After an even first period in the Odyssey the Giants took control in the second through Doucet and Pelle and with a 4-2 lead at the second break Belfast looked in control. But third period goals from McPherson and Bayrack levelled it up with 8 minutes to go. But Craig Peacock put the home side back on track with the winner with 2 minutes to go and Mike Garside’s empty netter sealed the victory.

Belfast’s win means they keep the pressure up on the rest of the Elite League and stay in control at the top. Whilst the loss for Braehead means they lose ground on Cardiff in the table.

Hull Stingrays 1 Nottingham Panthers 6

Nottingham like Belfast knew that this weekend was crucial in their title hopes. With Sheffield away the Panthers knew they had the chance to consolidate second sport. With first period goals from Fox and Beauregard the Panthers never looked like they would miss this opportunity. Even when the Stingrays tied the second period the Panthers didn’t look back with third period goals from Beauregard and Benedict and a final nail in the Hull coffin from youngster Robert Lachowic. The win for the Panthers means they put some daylight over the Sheffield Steelers in third place but with the Steelers having 5 games in hand the Panthers need to continue their winning ways to maintain second and keep the pressure on the Giants at the top.

Coventry Blaze 3 Dundee Stars 0

With no win in four games the Stars needed a victory to put their playoff hopes back on track. Whilst a pointless weekend last week for Coventry meant a win tonight was just as important. It was the visitors that looked the more confident as Dustin Wood gave them the advantage within the first 5 minutes. Despite matching the Blaze for shots the Stars couldn’t break through and a second period goal from Park doubled the Blaze advantage. The game was put beyond the hosts in the third period through Great Britain forward Robert Farmer. The win puts the Coventry Blaze back on track but the wins need to keep coming after an up and down start to the season. The loss for the Dundee Stars though puts them six points behind the Stingrays in the race for the playoffs but they do have 3 games in hand.

Edinburgh Capitals 4 Fife Flyers 2

The final game on Saturday night was the Forth derby at the Kirkcaldy ice rink with Fife seeking their second victory and in form Capitals side. It was the Capitals that got off to the flying start though as they took two goals in seven minutes though Zembergs and Mackenzie. A third goal for the visitors from Menton sparked a comeback from the home team as Gunn made it a 2 goal game going into the third.But the three goal lead was restored soon after the interval as Menton got his second of the game. Gunn’s second did reduce the deficit back to 2 for the Fife Flyers but was not enough. Edinburgh keep in control of a playoff spot by winning their third game in four whilst Fife’s spirited performances cannot seek out a second victory.

Premier League

Manchester Phoenix’s injury woes continued as they travelled south to Basingstoke with the news that player coach Tony Hand would need further X-rays on his injured foot. However the return of defenseman Jarek Spelda was a welcomed boost and the Phoenix came home with 2 points after a dominating second and third period saw them win 5-1. 

Slough failed last weekend to get a point and lost top spot but returned to winning ways with a solid performance against Bracknell; running out 7-2 winners at the Hanger. With those 2 points the Jets move level at the top with Guildford.

Milton Keynes rise up the table continued with a hard fought victory over the high flying Steeldogs at Planet Ice. Whilst Swindon keep in touch with the pack by winning at home against a Peterborough team that only one point of the foot of the table.

Results

Manchester Phoenix 5 Basingstoke Bison 1

Sheffield Steeldogs 2 Milton Keynes Lightning 3

Bracknell Bees 2 Slough Jets 7

Peterborough Panthers 2 Swindon Wildcats 5

Neil Tucker

www.bluelinehockeyblog.wordpress.com

Fife Flyers Win One over the Hull Stingrays

The Fife Flyers finally ended their torturous weekend of 4 games in 5 nights and ended it in some style. After 15 games to start the season without a victory and only one in the Challenge Cup the Elite League’s smallest and newest team finally got their first win.

With 3 games in 3 nights over the weekend seeming to have taken their toll as 2 players including player coach Todd Dutiaume faced late fitness test all the odds were stacked in Hull Stingrays favour. However this is a Fife team that got a point in Nottingham last weekend when the odds were not with them.

Fife opened the scoring inside two minutes through Siddall then doubled it through Hartmanis before the period was over. But when Cohen scored Fife’s third goal it sparked Hull into life; first with Tendler then Campbell to send the Flyers in at the second intermission only 1 goal up.  After the break Rodin then Dulle gave the visitors the lead and seemed to have ruined the night for the Kirkcaldy men. However Siddall hit a second with 90 seconds to go and send the game in OT.

Fife were still not out of the woods as a Siddall penalty in OT put Hull on the powerplay but the Flyers held on killing the penalty and sending the game to penalties. With no scorers on the board it came to Cohen who put the result in the book. Britain’s oldest club finally got their first win on their return to the top flight and roar in the Kirkcaldy ice rink could be heard across the land.

Fife remains bottom of the league but are now a point behind Dundee and 4 behind Edinburgh and the playoffs. Whilst Hull jump above the Capitals into seventh.

In other news. British forward Andrew Sharp has signed with the Guildford Flames of the EPL. The agitator played most of last season with the Manchester Phoenix winning the EPL title. Sharp has also iced in the EIHL with Sheffield Steelers and comes with a reputation for dropping the gloves and being physical.

Neil Tucker

www.bluelinehockeyblog.wordpress.com

BLOODY BRILLIANT - GRH TO COVER BRITISH HOCKEY

Looks like we are on the move again.  Getrealhockey is getting ready to send the troops into the field and cover British Ice Hockey.  We have received many inquiries from fans in the UK and Europe in regards to the beautiful game and the teams which play it ; in England.  Our team is happy to report that we have folks in London, Manchester, and Coventry.  We expect to get blog entries from them next weekend on the most important games played across the pond.

If you would like to be part of that team and you have an interest in blogging for GRH on British hockey; please email us @ geteralhockey@gmail.com.