Round the Rinks, 25th January

On we go with another weekend preview...starting with, as usual, the latest journeys of the Bison Terrific Ten...

Basingstoke: The Bison's merry little band take on Newcastle and Edinburgh this time out, aiming to gain four points on their rivals below and above them. The Sunday game in Scotland in particular is crucial to both side's playoff aspirations...if Bison win it'll drive another nail into the coffin of the Caps' playoff chase. Let's just say that the Terrific Ten will probably be vey tired indeed on Sunday after two seriously hard-fought games...

Belfast: A golden opportunity for the Giants to continue their run presents itself this weekend. Edinburgh and Hull are the opponents this time round-both languishing at the lower end of the table and teams the Giants will be confident of beating if they play the way they have been up until now. As both opponents would love to pull off a shock, however, there can be absolutely no slacking from the Northern Irish side...

Cardiff: The Devils come back out for another tough weekend against Sheffield and Manchester hoping to bring an end to their nightmare run of both injuries and results. Saturday perhaps gives them the best chance away in Altrincham, although beating the Steelers would provide a far bigger shock. However, I can't see them winning either unless Phil Osaer returns at least...

Coventry: Newcastle and Nottingham. Two games that can both knock the Blaze off course for the title, and two opponents who each have their own reasons for wanting to beat their rivals. The Giants will be hoping that at least one of the Vipers and the Panthers can find a way past the Blaze defence...and both games will provide very different challenges for Neal Martin and company-the title bid relies on them continuing to meet them...

Edinburgh: Belfast and Basingstoke are the latest teams bidding to end the Caps' playoff bid once and for all. The Scots will be hopeful of causing a shock in Belfast, but will be looking for revenge against Basingstoke for the 10-2 thrashing they received last time out at the hands of the Ten. You wouldn't bet against them getting it, either...especially if they do well in Northern Ireland the night before...

Hull: If you're a Stingrays fan, you're probably already prepared for another fruitless weekend against two of the top teams in the league as your team faces Sheffield and Belfast. This season is simply a case of marking time for the Humbersiders now, with a serious upturn in form needed if they're going to make the playoffs. I just can't see it coming for them, whatever the press releases say..

Manchester: The Phoenix have a home double-header against Cardiff and Nottingham. There's potential for at least one win against two teams who are both somewhat inconsistent at the moment...and if any team can pull out a win when the opposition are off form, it's Manchester. Especially with Joe Tallari and the little ball of hate that is Luke Stauffacher both on the roster...

Newcastle: Basingstoke and Coventry are the opponents on the Vipers' return to action, with worries over both new signings in Burt Henderson and Cory Morgan as the DWP drag their feet in producing the required work permits for them to make their debuts. Basingstoke aren't exactly brimming with players themselves, but the last place you want to go with a short roster is Coventry. Assuming the DWP sorts itself out, the Vipers will be hopeful of at least two points-which day they'll come, then, is open to conjecture...

Nottingham: The Panthers take on Coventry and Manchester-two games which they can win on a good day but lose horribly on a bad day. There's been two many bad days for the Panthers this season, and this has contributed to them once again not really being in the race for league honours. However, buoyed by their six-three win in the Challenge Cup final first leg in midweek, there's hope of a four-pointer springing eternal in the East Midlands...

Sheffield: Hull and Cardiff stand against the Steelers this time out-perfectly positioned to receive the backlash of the Challenge Cup disappointments in midweek. With Jody Lehman back in net and Dan Tessier now with some game action under his belt, both the Stingrays and the Devils will be looking upon this weekend with some trepidation...

And that's your preview for this week...let's play hockey...