The Breakaway British Hockey Blog: 03_09

A quick correction to yesterday's post first of all...as Yotes points out, Newcastle were the only team beginning with "N" to be present at last years playoff finals...Nottingham didn't make it. That was something I should have caught in the re-read if not the original type...it's duly been edited, with thanks to Yotes for pointing it out in such a polite fashion (as a Panthers fan, a slightly sarky comment would have been more than justified :)) and apologies to both Vipers and Panthers...

Onwards...as promised yesterday, the Breakaway is continuing its playoff link with Five Minute Major, this time round creating the ultimate playoff playlist. The way this works is simple...I do ten over here, and then Becky and Matt over at FMM do their ten, and between us we create the ultimate soundtrack CD to playoff weekend...(well, an alternative one, obviously-being the NIC we're likely to get the ruddy Clap Clap Song, Chelsea Dagger, or, if we're really unlucky, Sandstorm on repeat, given that most British hockey music has to either be family-friendly clappiness or bad techno nowadays, it seems. Or, if you're lucky, a few of the same rock songs that get played in the NHL, such as Sweet Child O'Mine...

Anyway...a quick caveat before my ten...

Most of them are going to be alternative/rock, and fairly heavy at that (with one notable exception). This is because rock music is the only one that really fits hockey properly, in my opinion.

They're intended to excite anticipation in the hockey to come, or put you in the mood. If you can imagine a montage of hits, goals and fights to it, there's a good chance I considered it...

And, obviously, this is not a definitive list, feel free to suggest what you'll be firing up on the iPod on the way to Nottingham, and we'll see about building a "Now That's What I Call British Hockey!" if by some fluke there are more than one or two comments...

These songs will probably work best in the order they're given...

The reasons given are mine and mine alone, and there'll be one for each track, just to keep you interested...or otherwise...

Through the magic of youtube, there's a link to the best version of each song I could find, also.

Anyway...on we go. Crank that stereo up and let's drop the puck!

1. Gustav Holst: "Mars, the Bringer of War" (from "The Planets"): Yes, it's classical. But a piece originally written intended to reflect the coming of mechanised warfare, the rattle of machine guns and the roar of exploding bombs is possibly the ideal, if somewhat left-field way to open this CD...the ebb and flow of the music and the pounding, menacing thump of the main theme is almost as unsettling as the snarl of Brett Clouthier dropping the gloves or the sight of two heavyweights circling each other like a pair of fighting grizzlies....but the high point of the whole thing occurs around 4 minutes in, as the music builds to a crescendo, higher and higher, before the main theme kicks back in with the sound and fury that even a packed Panthers/Steelers playoff final can only dream of...if hockey is legalised war on ice, then this is its soundtrack...
David Bowie: "Heroes": Yes, it's a fairly obvious choice what with the themes of heroism and game-winners that come ready-made with semi-finals, finals, winning and losing...But that isn't the reason it fits hockey so well. This is...and this is what I think of whenever I hear Bowie's voice...Bill Clement's commentary and all. For some, the greatest moment of this marriage of sublime hockey commentary and great music is right at the beginning, as skates are tied and players glide in slow motion through the mist. For others it's "GRRRRRREEEEAAAAT SAVE JOS-EPH!". For still others, it might be Bowie's distinctive voice soaring over the image of a leaping Matthew Barnaby as Clement yells that most hallowed of hockey phrases to mark the moment Barnaby "shoots....and SCORES!" Either way, it's one minute of hockey heaven-and that's why the song that goes with it makes this list.
Garbage: "Push It":
Like "Heroes" this one perhaps makes it in more by association with hockey imagery rather than with the game itself. However, while "Heroes" and the images with it are notable for showcasing the grace and beauty that can be found in all aspects of hockey, this song, and the images it was used with (from the first NHL game I actually owned) are all about the intensity and power. The fact that I happen to find Shirley Manson's drawl among the sexiest singing voices on the planet doesn't hinder the song much either. From the puck dropping in the empty rink, to the animated player taking a burning stick from on high as the song builds, to the game footage (including the awesome "slide-along-the-bench" check (watch the video to see which I mean) means that hearing this song always, always fires me up for some hockey...it makes the violence of hockey look beautiful...
Prodigy: "Smack My Bitch Up: Self-explanatory, this song...it's just an absolutely awesome hockey tune to thump out loud on the way to a game. If, like me, you like to imagine it as some sort of audio ode to Dan Tessier getting a kicking from Rob Dowd, Jay Latulippe pointing out the error of Ryan Finnerty's ways, or the same Finnerty dealing with Bruce Richardson once and twice in the way every non-Panthers player would have probably liked to at some point this season, then that's just extra.
Hammerfall: "Any Means Necessary":

by any means necessary"

should be a mantra ringing in your team's head by now...

Judas Priest: "Painkiller"
"Faster than a bullet-terrifying scream. Enraged and full of anger, he's half man and half machine". Believe it or not, this song wasn't written about an angry Brad Voth, nor for Steve Munn when he's on the warpath. What it was written for is unashamed hell-for-leather (and being Judas Priest, leather was never in short supply) headbanging. Breakneck speed, Rob Halford's barely-human scream and more potential for making angry faces while singing along than you can shake a Rbk 9k stick at...it's just pure bloody fun to have on on the way to a hockey game...
Turisas: "Battle Metal":
...as is this, from Finland...granted, Viking Metal may not be to everyone's taste but the clue's in the title, really...sing along, yell your fan war-cries out of the window if you're on the motorway and generally have a whale of a time pretending to be rampaging barbarians invading the wilds of Nottingham, aiming to drink the Castle dry and roar your team to victory in the company of your warrior brethren as they quest for British hockey's Holy Grail (well, one of them)..."BAT-TLE! BAT-TLE! MET-AL!"
Korn: "Here To Stay:
...This, meanwhile, is music to make pure, unadulterated war by. Like "Mars" which opened this ten, it's uncompromisingly aggressive and all business...this is the brutality of playoff hockey summed up in aural form.
Hanson Brothers: "The Hockey Song"

The Pogues: "Love You Til The End":

PS, I Love You

Mystery, Alaska.

Five Minute Major

You lucky people...you get a double burst of song to sum up the post this time round...with a rude word or two included...

For the on-ice action...

"here I am, a poster-board pin-up for you to hate"
Walls of Jericho: "There's No "I" In "F*** You!"...

Yup...playoff quarter-finals weekend is now over, and the teams still playing in the EIHL have been cut from eight to four. The EIHL hierarchy will be breathing a quiet sigh of relief this evening, as the form-book and league position held true for all of the quarter-finals bar one (that of Belfast v Cardiff, which was the most-closely matched by league position going into the weekend) and the "biggest rivalry in Europe" (nope, we're not going to let that one go) has a chance of one more meeting this season in the playoff final. Unfortunately, for every other British hockey fan the big Nottingham weekend smacks of déja vu, as once againt it's Sheffield, Nottingham, Coventry and Cardiff who will play for the playoff trophy, with only Nottingham being different from last season's line-up (as Yotes correctly points out, Newcastle were there last season along with the other three teams) with the rest of the league spectating...

Now, far be it from me to pour, if not cold water, than at least lukewarm water on British ice-hockey's premier even at the start of the build-up, but I can't shake the feeling that this is...well, somewhat of a let-down for many, particularly fans of, say, Manchester. Obviously, the fans of the four teams present at the weekend are happy, the EIHL are happy because the arena is likely to be the most full it was going to be with both Nottingham and Sheffield present, but looking at the line-up, are the four most exciting (not best, you'll notice) or even the four most deserving teams there?

Sheffield we can instantly discount from this conversation...they have clearly been the best team in the league this season by some distance, as shown by their somewhat relaxed stroll to the title. Cardiff, traditionally stronger in the latter part of the season, have once again demonstrated their knack of hitting their stride at just the right moment...plus they provide the compelling storyline of "will the traditional bridesmaids finally shake their playoff curse this year"?

You can make convincing arguments for both Coventry and Nottingham-the Blaze have battled confidence issues in certain areas this season (and, arguably, have rode their luck like a rented donkey in order to get through to the final, down to the point where Newcastle were the width of JF Perras' left butt-cheek from equalising and forcing overtime on Sunday night after being the better side for five out of the six periods) but are still a team built of hard-working, skilful players who have battled criticism from all sides (including their own fans), signings that didn't turn out and still finished second in the league. As for Nottingham-when they're on form they're one of the most exciting teams in the league to watch-trouble is they very rarely turn on the skill they can, particularly when it comes to PO time...

Look at who's missing-Belfast (dynamos going forward-even if they've resorted more and more to rough-housing at times recently, meaning that Cardiff were heavily supported by neutrals in the quarter finals) and Manchester, who have had the kind of luck recently that can only be caused by smashing a mirror over the head of a black cat while walking under a ladder, as well as a horrific schedule, not all of which was due to poor planning on their part. Then we have Edinburgh, who had the misfortune to meet an imperious Steelers when you'd have at least put a couple of quid on them against any other side in the league.

I reckon that what I'm trying to say is that, even though the league has been the most-evenly matched for some seasons (well, behind Sheffield) and there was genuine hope that any one of the eight teams could have made it to Nottingham and provided the "biggest spectacle of European hockey" with something new and genuinely exciting to watch in a time when British hockey really needs something new both on and off the ice to restore many fans' faith, it's ended up being a case of "same old, same old".

And this is fine...but watching the EIHL playoffs this weekend, many will not be able to shake a slight twinge of déja vu. And that's slightly sad.

To sum up-this year's EIHL playoff experience will, at least for some, be like winning the lottery and buying a new VW Golf GTi when you could have a Bugatti Veyron...you know you'll still get a lot of enjoyment out of it, but there'll always be this little thought that it could be so much better...

And now for the second burst of song as we move off-ice...

"I always say how I don't need you
But it's always gonna come right back to this
Please don't leave me"

Pink: "Please Don't Leave Me"

With Basingstoke already an EPL team as announced last week, Newcastle rumoured to be in trouble (this press release implies that the decision over whether or not they'll be around next season is still not complete with the talk of needing "further commitment from fans and partners") and Manchester also rumoured to be considering jumping ship from the EIHL in order to ensure the long-term survival of hockey in the North West (owner Neil Morris has said in an interview with the Phoenix podcast that they are looking at "all options") the EIHL is fast reaching a crisis point in its history. Much has been made by those who follow the sport of the perceived "arrogance" of the "Big Four" (Sheffield, Nottingham, Belfast, and Coventry) with claims and counter-claims flying back and forth over who holds sway in decisions about the league's future-the latest discussion is once again over import limits, as some teams argue for a drop to the BNL days of eight imports and others reportedly resist. Depending on who you talk to, it's the "Big Four" resisting change from the smaller teams in order to protect their dominance of the league or the other six doing their best to undermine whatever strides the other teams attempt to make by refusing to compromise.

All that, to me, is immaterial-there are two truths, and only two, staring us in the face here:

Unless something changes, then the EIHL will lose, at a minimum, two more teams.

If that happens, the league is screwed.

All the arguments about who or what is responsible for the situation need to stop. Right now.

The EIHL has been a brave experiment in its current format, but it's failed. It's gone as far as it can go with 10-import hockey.
The fact that one team is already gone and two more are having to consider dropping a level just to survive, because they can't compete, must show something to the "big four". The ticket prices are too high-driven by the arena teams needing to pay the best players, success automatically being considered a licence to print money, and the change at some clubs (even in these credit crunch times) seemingly deciding to openly exploit and make as much money as those coming into the building as possible without realising that this will drive fans away (and the prices will be ridiculously too high to attract newbies to what is still a relatively small-time sport-people will simply not pay them for an unknown quantity, and free tickets don't equal automatic returns). And, as is always the case, it's the smaller teams, who are forced to spend far more of their budget just to compete with, never mind beat, the big teams who suffer first.

And yet it seems, from rumblings I've heard about the treatment of certain of these smaller clubs at EIHL board meetings, that the "big" teams care little as long as they survive themselves, and indeed are doing everything they can to keep control of the league in their own image. The head-in-the-sand mentality of some fans on both sides is breathtaking, as every club in the league depends on every other...and if Manchester and Newcastle decide that the EIHL is no longer workable, then change will no longer be an option to considered and be dismissed by those few clubs making a decent fist of things as they are now...it'll be a necessity in order to survive.

And on that sobering thought, we'll finish for today
Tomorrow, the Breakaway joins up with Five Minute Major to begin the countdown to Nottingham by creating the ultimate Playoff Playlist CD...ideal for listening to in your cars/trains or buses (or, in one epic Sheffieldian's case, taxi followed by plane followed by train on the way to the NIC this weekend...or even just to get you in the mood...check back tomorrow evening...

"I believe that there's hope, buried beneath it all and
Hiding beneath it all, and growing beneath it all
And...
This is how we'll dance
When they try to take us down"
Paramore: "Let The Flames Begin"

Right then...as mentioned yesterday, the Breakaway is sharing the playoff preview duties with Five Minute Major, and will be swapping posts back and forth throughout the next week or so in the build-up to the playoffs, as a kind of precursor to the big meet/booze-up of British hockey fans that is the Elite League weekend. Click the link above to see them discuss the reasons for optimism if you're a fan of Manchester, Cardiff, Newcastle or Sheffield, or read on as we pick 5 reasons each why Coventry, Belfast, Nottingham or Edinburgh can win the playoffs...

In alphabetical order, here we go, in short and pithy fashion:

BELFAST GIANTS

"FIRE IN THE HOLE!":: The Giants attack is lethal. With players like Paul Deniset, Colin Shields and Mike Burgoyne driving their team forward, the Northern Irish side will always be difficult to stop going forward. And when you score more goals than the opposition, you win games, more often than not...

THAT WINNING FEELING: Belfast have two trophies already this season...and have the taste of success in their mouths. And once you've sampled sweetness like that, you only want more.

ROLEPLAYERS RULE!: In Malcolm MacMillan, Graeme Walton, Paul Sample and friends, the Giants have a very good supporting cast indeed to back up the much-heralded stars of the top line-their play may be questionable at times but there's no denying it's horrendously effective at throwing other teams off their game...

ROCKING THE RINKS: They may not be the largest in number, but the Northern Irish support are among the best in the league for getting behind their team, particularly when trophies are on the line. It may be a cliché about fans being the "sixth man" but it's only become a cliché because those saying it have proven to be right so often...

"NOT THIS TIME!": The Giants, in the Elite League era, have traditionally been a team who've disappeared when the chips are down in playoff time. With the Odyssey crowd having seen already this season that this incarnation can hang with the best (and fight back from seemingly desperate positions to win), the players will believe that no situation is insurmountable right now...and that mental toughness is what wins playoff titles...

COVENTRY BLAZE

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT: The Blaze squad contains several who've won everything there is to win in British hockey already with them, including players like Barrie Moore, Tom Watkins, and Russ Cowley. Not only that, but players like Jon Weaver and Leigh Jamieson have won trophies with other teams-the Blaze team is full of individuals who know what it takes to win come playoff time...

DEADLY DUO: Not only that, but two of those individuals are also arguably the most lethal duo in the the league. Dan Carlson and Adam Calder first played together in the treble-winning year of 2004/05, and from their first game you could see a beautiful friendship had been born. When these two are firing, a goal is always on the horizon unless your goalie is pretty damn special...

POINTS MEAN PRIZES: Continuing on the attacking theme, the Blaze have five players who have broken the fifty-point barrier in the league this season, and two of the top-ten. The offensive power is there for all to see.

CULTURE SHOCK: Paul Thompson is a coach who will accept nothing less than the best from his players. Any who don't give every last sinew to the cause will be held accountable, both by their coaches and their team-mates. And there's nothing like fear of disappointing your friends in big games to drive players on...

SECOND STINGS: Last season the Blaze made it all the way to the playoff finals, but failed to defend their title as they were shut out in the final by Sheffield. After losing out in the league chase this season, the Blaze will be wounded, knowing that ending a season silverware-less is a state of affairs that has only happened twice since 2002 in Coventry...they intend to keep the next time as far away in the future as they can, or for one more year at least...

NOTTINGHAM PANTHERS

HOME ICE ADVANTAGE: The playoffs are being held at the Panthers' home rink, in front of a large number of their own fans. Not being there is simply not an option-anything less then getting there and winning it will still be considered a failure...a powerful motivational tool, the disappointment of your home crowd...

THESE CATS HAVE CLAWS: One thing about the Panthers...for a team considered to rely on finesse rather than power, they're not afraid of the odd ruck. Rumun Ndur, Bruce Richardson and Kevin Bergin are all more than willing to dish out some punches where required, and a team that fights together, wins together...

CLARKE HAS CLOUT: David Clarke has been lost somewhat this season among the trumpeted feats of his team-mates, but that'll suit him just fine...with opposition players fixating on Johan Molin and friends, this Brit forward is perfectly placed and skilful enough to come to the fore...

CREATIVITY CONQUERS ALL: You may think Dan Tessier is a money-grabbing, diving toe-rag (copyright Sheffield Steelers) or you may believe he's the second coming of Wayne Gretzky (copyright certain sections of the NIC crowd). Either way, you can't deny he is arguably the best playmaker in the EIHL...if he and fellow artist Johan Molin can unlock defences, then others on the Panthers roster will profit...and he could be all the difference in a tight game...

BRIT PACK: The Panthers have several of the best British players around...we've already mentioned Dave Clarke but the defensive skills of Danny Meyers and the never-say-die attitude of Matt Myers and Marc Levers will also play a big part if the trophy comes to Nottingham-few teams in the league have a better crop of home-grown talent, with the exception, perhaps, of Coventry and Sheffield...

EDINBURGH CAPITALS

UNDER THE RADAR: The Scots are coming into this tournament with no expectation resting on them whatsoever...and teams with the freedom to simply go out and play without any fears of letting anyone down are the ones who often come from nowhere...it's why "giant-killing" is seen so often in sport.

DRIVEN BY YOU: Doug Christiansen is a perfectionist-if his team are losing then he will lead by example on the ice as well as from the bench. That's the kind of coach and player that becomes a playoff legend. Or makes a few of his own.

SKILL TO BURN: You can never overlook a team which contains a player who's the second-top point-scorer in the EIHL...and given that we've raved about the creative talents of Dan Tessier as a reason to be optimistic for Nottingham, we couldn't leave the seen-by-some-as-even-better Mark Hurtubise out...

THE LITTLE TEAM THAT COULD: The Capitals have faced an epic fight just to be here-and have been playing playoff hockey since late January, effectively, in their battle with Hull, pulling off some impressive results along the way. If any team has momentum going into the playoffs apart from Belfast, it's them...

EVERYONE LOVES CINDERELLA STORIES: Finally, the Capitals start their playoff campaign against reigning champions Sheffield, with few giving them any chance of progressing, but many hoping they will. Sometimes, even the hockey gods enjoy giving Cinderella teams their chance to go to the ball...maybe, this time round, it's just the Capitals' turn...

There you go...keep smiling...

Hi all...

Apologies for the lack of activity this week, but have been rather busy elsewhere...and the blog has slipped below sleep in my priorities as I'm not getting that much of it. Tomorrow will see the Breakaway share playoff preview duties with Five Minute Major, as the two blogs attempt to find five reasons why each team will win the playoffs. Why? Well, because it's better when everyone feels optimistic going into a competition...:)

My half of the draw, featuring Coventry, Belfast, Nottingham and Edinburgh, will appear round about 7pm on Friday evening...until then, keep keeping your eye on the puck...

"If flesh could crawl
My skin would fall, from
Off my bones and run away from here..."

Garbage: "As Heaven Is Wide""

That weekend was something of a let-down, wasn't it? At least on the ice...off it the Breakaway and Five Minute Major finally met in person, and myself, Matt and Becky spent most of the Coventry-Belfast game conversing on all things hockey...some of the fruits of which you can read in this week's editions...let's get on with the last league Double Overtime of 2008/09...

Could it have been the first game that saw both teams trying to lose?: After Saturday's games, there was a text floating around, allegedly from a fairly senior Hull player with a famous father to a Blaze official, suggesting that the Stingrays were easing off against Edinburgh on Sunday (Edinburgh's win on Saturday against Manchester having ended Hull's season and taken away the potential showdown for eighth place) in order to allow the Caps to win and leapfrog Newcastle into seventh, thus gaining them a match-up against Coventry in the playoffs rather than Sheffield. However, the Vipers had allegedly agreed to this in advance, due to believing they had more chance of beating the Steelers with their style of play.

Meanwhile, Coventry, allegedly, would have preferred to play Newcastle as the Blaze seem to have the Vipers' number somewhat this season, whereas they've struggled recently against the Capitals. And, coincidentally, Blaze and Vipers faced each other on Sunday night.

As it happened, a Vipers win means that the Blaze will be the happiest-however, the very fact that people are openly talking about such "arrangements" in order that teams can effectively pick and choose their playoff matches, however valid the reasons and whether they happen or not (which is something that we'll never know for sure), leaves a little bit of an alarm bell ringing in my mind.

Speaking of alarm bells: Sunday night in Manchester saw the Phoenix finish the game with one fit defenceman after a rash of injuries, many of them caused by hits that it would probably be best to call "questionab;e" from Belfast. Interestingly, the Giants were similarly gritty on Saturday against Coventry, with a VERY questionable check from Dave Phillips (head-high from behind on Dan Carlson-luckily the Blaze forward was unhurt but severely unimpressed) being just one of many borderline plays from the Giants...by all accounts things were far worse up north in a game which doubled as cup-final first leg (with the 3-3 score in regulation counting) and league fixture (which the Phoenix took 4-3 in OT).

Surely there are less disreputable ways to soften up an opposition team in a cup final?

Is it getting warm in here?:...because, with the playoffs looming, Cardiff have suddenly caught fire. A 3-0 win against Nottingham following a 7-1 thumping of Hull was just the latest weekend in a lengthening run of victories and means that the Devils go into the playoffs in top form...the 123 PIM's shared out against Nottingham on Sunday proves that they are not afraid to defend each other either-a quality sorely needed at this time of year...Given their history of being perennial bridesmaids at playoff weekend time, all of South Wales' hockey fraternity will be hoping that this is the year that the Devils finally turn promise into fruition...

So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, goodbye...: to Basingstoke and Hull, who are now done for the season and have no matters more pressing than planning their team end-of-season lash-up to occupy their hockey consciousnesses until the off-season transfers begin. Basingstoke's season died as, for the most part, it had lived-in penury and being outclassed by superior opponents. When you're playing Sheffield on the final weekend of the season, and have lost 25 on the bounce, then you know it's been a bad season...the Bison extending their record to 27 was almost inevitable.
At least Hull made a fight of it...

I appreciate this is a very short post, but with Saturday's results ensuring that there would be no final-day showdown for a playoff spot but simply teams playing out their fixtures (with, of course, the notable exception of Manchester and Belfast's cup final)...it ends like the league season itself..."not with a bang, but a whimper"

Bring on the playoffs...

Double Overtime will be up, as is becoming usual, late this afternoon. Ideally, it'll be around 4 or 5pm, just in time for you when you come home from work, like the written version of a piping-hot hotpot...

However, if not, then it will definitely appear by 7pm at the latest...

"So here I go is my shot.
Feet fail me not
Cause may be the only opportunity that I got"
Eminem: "Lose Yourself"

This Round the Rinks, the last of the regular season, will be somewhat shorter than normal. This isn't meant as disrespect to the other teams playing, or because I'm lazy. It's because that, with the league over and the playoff quarters all but decided (Belfast, Nottingham and Coventry are still scrapping for second place but, unless Nottingham lose and the other two teams both win both their games (which is impossible as Coventry and Belfast play each other), the positions at the start of the weekend will be the positions at the end of it in the EIHL-and so the vast majority of games have little more riding on them than pride, and quite frankly I feel that both you and I would be bored by reading pretty much the same preview with only the team-names changed for six of the nine games this weekend...

However, there are three games (Hull v Cardiff and Edinburgh and Edinburgh v Manchester on Saturday) which are far from meaningless...they will decide which team out of the Caps and Stingrays goes into the playoffs.

The situation is simple. Hull have to win both games in regulation and hope that Edinburgh lose on Saturday in order to qualify outright. If Edinburgh beat Manchester tomorrow, or even, potentially, lose in OT, they're playing on this season. If Hull lose to Cardiff, they go home.

Assuming Hull beat Cardiff and Edinburgh lose to Manchester in regulation, the Crazy Eighth race will come down to a "cup final" between the two teams on Sunday night in Hull. A regulation win for either side means that team are in the playoffs. An OT win for Edinburgh means they're in. An OT win for Hull may still not be enough. However, it'll mean that both teams have won three of their meetings with each other this season, which means that the EIHL then go to some hidden formula which changes every year (I believe it's wins in total this year, in which case the Caps qualify-just).

If you assume that Hull need a four-point weekend, you can't go wrong.

However, all attention is already turning to Sunday on Humberside, which may be the best game in the EIHL this year if results on Saturday give it the chance to be...if things happen to do so on Saturday then I for one will be keeping a close eye on Sunday night's events...if you're in the area, then go. You can be almost certain you won't regret it...

And there is your Crazy Eighth Special...

"Great expectations-we had the greatest expectations

We were always waiting...always waiting.

We were always waiting for something to happen..."

The Gaslight Anthem: "Great Expectations"

And that, I think, sums up the situation Manchester fans are now in-immensely proud of their team (Becky's latest post on Five Minute Major speaks for many judging by the Phoenix forum) after I, seemingly, jinxed their tired team last night...on we go to look back at last night and praise those who may not get enough in the EIHL as we bring back the All-Under-Rated Allstars...

They may be bridesmaids today, but next week could still see them in a white dress and veil: It appears that, after all the hope, the sheer number of games Manchester have played in the last week may have cost them the Challenge Cup. After much hope and coming within five minutes of at least a continuing chance at a trophy, the tiring Phoenix had their hearts broken by a soft Mike Burgoyne shot that snuck past Stephen Murphy and handed Belfast the Challenge Cup...perhaps inevitably after the Giants had pulled away to a 2-0 lead in the first period and pulled back from 4-0 to 4-3 in the first leg...

Congratulations to Belfast, though...this Challenge Cup Final was one of the rare ones where you couldn't really deny either team winning it for any reason...

Now that's out of the way...

"Love is a four letter word
And never spoken here"
Metallica: "The Day That Never Comes"

Yep...it's time for the All-Under-Rated Allstars again...those players that, for whatever reason, just don't get seen as among the genuine stars in the league or even, in many cases, of their team, but perhaps deserve to be...every team has at least one and we're going to run through them now...

Basingstoke: Eric Braff (defence): Yes, picking him may seem a bit unlikely on a team which regularly concedes a high number of goals, but believe me, if it wasn't for the big (6'4, 220lb) lump of Ontarian meat on the blue-line, Bison would have let in a hell of a lot more both last season and this. Forced into an almost impossible situation this season as player-coach of a team stumbling blindly towards the end of the season, Braff has soldiered on with quiet dignity and deserves a much better situation than the one he's currently in...

Belfast: Graeme Walton (defence): Lost sometimes amongst the screams for attention from Belfast's legion of talented forwards and gaudy offensive defense is a player who has quietly settled himself into a position as one of Great Britain's better defensemen. Walton has spent his entire career with his hometown club, and at 27 is entering the prime of his career. Converting from forward to a calm stay-at-home d-man who does the simple things well and plays the game with intelligence, the Belfast lad will never set the scoreboards alight but has stepped confidently into Jason Stone's shoes as GB's premier defensive d-man almost un-noticed. And given the career and respect which the Cardiff Devil has and still does enjoy around the league, that is no mean feat...

Cardiff: Ben Davies (forward): Another player with his hometown club, the young forward is just beginning to make waves on the EIHL scene as a very skilful, speedy winger with an eye for goalscoring opportunities. Often discounted by many because of his youth, the potential to be one of Great Britain's next generation of great forwards, alongside Rob Dowd of Sheffield and team-mate Matt Towe, is clear to anyone who watches him play...

Coventry: Erik Hjalmarsson (forward): It may seem somewhat strange putting a player who joined the EIHL only in January on this list, but the Swede has been one of the Blaze's best players since he joined, along with fellow new recruit Blake Forsyth. Speedy, feisty, hard-working and with an eye for goal, he's quickly become a favourite of many on the Skydome crowd, while seeming to receive no fanfare whatsoever...

Edinburgh: Brad Bonello (forward): Sean Perkins ran Bonello very close indeed, and Mark Hurtubise was perhaps the obvious choice (even though many are aware of his gaudy points totals, few seem to really talk about the Caps centre as among the best player in the league) but the feisty Bonello, hailing from Brampton, Ontario, has acted like a small, curly-haired sparkplug to the Caps. His 6 goals and 7 assists in 6 weeks of play may seem fairly average, but his mean-as-a-junkyard-dog style of play (more expected from a player much bigger than him) and agitation skills have added a new edge to the Scots team at just the right moment-his style is more bar-room brawl than art gallery, but that's just the kind of style that you need in a dog-fight such as a playoff race...

Hull: Jeff Glowa (forward): Captain Marvel for the Stingrays, Glowa has sometimes been the only player scoring this season, and is having a career year just when his team need it. He's the kind of player you never notice, and then check the statsheet the day after to see his name in the goals and assist columns without quite remembering seeing him get there...anonymity isn't a hindrance but a help for the Stingrays number 9...

Manchester: Lucas Burnett (forward): Have a look at my Challenge Cup preview from yesterday for the reasons why...

Newcastle: Mark Gouett (defence): Another player who has flown almost completely under the radar, the Vipers defence has often consisted of leaning heavily on this ex-London Racer to get the forward rushes going...the 6'1, 195lb native of the fantastically-named town of Waubaushene (Wow-bow-shay-nee? War-baw-sheen? How do you pronouce that?) has been one of the most consistent players in an under-achieving Vipers squad...

Nottingham: Nick Toneys (defence): Toneys has a thankless task on defence-if he plays well, he never gets mentioned, and if he plays badly, he's castigated-but it's a job he sets to with a will each and every night, frequently being one of the outstanding players on the ice...but stopping goals with clever positioning and a calm head at the back isn't the kind of play that gets you talked about, except in tones of quiet respect on the other teams' benches...

Sheffield: Doug Sheppard (forward): It's hard to pick a player as "under-rated" on a squad most people agree is by far the best in the league as a whole, but Sheppard qualifies-as a veteran of several years in the EIHL with first Basingstoke and now Sheffield, the product of Georgetown, Ontario has consistently and quietly been one of the better forwards in the EIHL, and while his offensive numbers may not be as gaudy as some, his contribution to the Steelers cause, his workrate and his professionalism (demonstrated best when he was coach of Basingstoke and left them to go to Sheffield in the classiest of ways) are second to none.

There you go-the best EIHL players you've never noticed...now, keep keeping your eye on the puck...

"There's no tomorrow, just today
Together we will follow, fly away
Never mind tomorrow, just today...
(leave it all behind)
Let's go for a ride..."
Shiny Toy Guns: "Rocketship"

It's time to give the Challenge Cup the attention it deserves, as it kicks off a week where only Friday will see a lack of EIHL action between now and next Monday. Manchester travel to Belfast with a four-three lead from the first leg, as you may remember from last Tuesday's post or the excellent match reports on the Manchester-based blogs. With the cup having to be won tomorrow night and raising the prospect of overtime and even penalties, it's got to be worth (even if you're a neutral) nipping on to the Giants Webcast site to see if they're broadcasting it from Dundonald...you can find all the info you need on there...

Meanwhile, while you're waiting for the game to start, here's all the info you need about the game itself...in a specially extended edition of the One Minute Preview...

Belfast Giants

GAMEPLAN
As has been the case all season, and is even more so with the Giants needing to win in regulation even to take the game into overtime, the Giants will be relying heavily on their forwards to take the game to Manchester early. With Stevie Lyle sometimes being a little shaky they can't rely on two quick goals followed by a rearguard action, particularly with Manchester's prolific forwards, so the instruction to the likes of Colin Shields and Paul Deniset will be "full-steam ahead into the zone, and get shots off as often as possible". With Jason Rushton taking care of any necessary rough-stuff and Malcolm MacMillan also fond of throwing a jab or two where the need arises, the Giants are a team who are far more comfortable when playing a fast, open game, and they'll be looking to charge forward every chance they get...no neutral-zone trapping here...

THREE STARS:

1. Paul Deniset (centre): Everyone knows about the 6'2, 170lb Manitoban by now, and everyone knows that as soon as the puck crosses the opposition blue-line, he becomes more threatening than an angry Rottweiler pointing a machine gun at your head. The true genius in Deniset's style of play is that everyone in the rink knows exactly what he's going to try to do (get himself a yard of space in the slot using his speed, and fire a quick and lethally-accurate shot home), but he's so good at what he does (37 goals this season say so, along with 46 assists) that at times, you still can't stop him doing it...Belfast will be hoping tonight is one of those times...

2. Bobby Robins (right wing): Where Deniset and Colin Shields are the razor-sharp rapiers in the Giants' armoury, Robins, for all his not-inconsiderable skill himself, is more like the battering-ram. He's become one of the most-feared power-forwards in the league despite having his season shortened by niggling injuries, and a return of 26 goals and 33 assists (behind only Deniset, Shields and Evan Cheverie in Giants scoring) means that his crash-and-bang style of play should be taken very seriously indeed-this bloke is so much more than just a blunt instrument-he's the one who makes the yard of space for Deniset and friends to get their shots off. When he's not powering through checks or defenders in front of the net to deflect shots home or pounce on rebounds himself, that is. He may be fairly big already at 6'1 and 220lbs, but when he's on his game, there are times when he looms twice as large in the minds of oppostion fans and players...

3. Mike Burgoyne (defence): Of course, as "Shark" Lavay said in "Any Given Sunday" after slicing an offensive players' car in half with a chainsaw just to make a point..."In football, you have the offense and the defense. You can't have one without the other. Respect will be paid."
Hockey is just the same, and in Burgoyne, standing 6'2 and 200lbs and with 16 goals and 38 assists already this season, there are few defencemen in the EIHL more worthy of being paid such respect. His willingness to jump into the play, his speed and fast hands mean that, along with Rod Sarich and Jon Weaver he is one of the premier offensive d-men in the league and often is the silent partner who allows Deniset and friends to put up the numbers, firing in big shots from the point as easily as supplying a defence-splitting pass. However, with David Beauregard (more on him shortly) facing him, we may see more of his defensive abilities required. That, too, is something at which the big Ontarian is also pretty handy when he needs to be...

And now, for their opponents:

Manchester Phoenix

GAMEPLAN
The Phoenix come into this game in the stronger position, carrying a one-goal lead from the first leg last Sunday in Altrincham. This was a lead earned by a first two periods praised by many as the best ever seen from a Phoenix team, in which they jumped to a 4-0 lead after 31 minutes before being pegged back in the third. Those at the game noted the speed and physicality with which the Phoenix played the game, harrying the Giants relentlessly and hitting everything that moved.
This is the way they need to play tonight. If the Giants are allowed time to set up and given enough time to pick a pass, they will happily zi[ through you all night. However, with the big and ugly Phoenix Bash Brothers (Kyle Bruce and Brett Clouthier) in their faces, they can be knocked off their game (and their skates on some occasions)-which then gives the skill players chance to play Belfast at their own game...a game which they can, and have, won once already...

THREE STARS

1. Tony Hand (centre): The greatest British player ever is seemingly ageless, even at forty-one. He has ability that would shame many import centres, the eyes of a hawk and hands which are as creative as any artist or sculptor. With the kind of passing ability that can land a puck on a penny from the other side of the ice if you so desire, and no mean ability to score himself, he and his sniper partner David "Bullseye" Beauregard are possibly the most feared forward combination in the league. A combined total of 75 goals (56 for Beauregard alone) and 184 points should tell you why.

2. Lucas Burnett (wing): If you've seen Manchester at all this season, dear reader, you'll already know about the Production Line of Beauregard, Hand and Luke Fulghum or the talismanic power of Brett Clouthier, but the contribution of Burnett, the 6'1, 224lb British Columbian, may have passed you by, lost in the razzmatazz of flying fists and huge numbers. This is very unfair on the Rossland, BC native. Joining the Phoenix as an unheralded replacement for Grant Jacobsen, and with relatively little expected of him, he's become a huge part of one of the most prolific third lines in the league alongside Adam Walker and Clouthier. 14+24 in 49 games are numbers that many second-line power forwards would be pleased with, and are better than both his linemates. But what Burnett also brings is something of a physical edge-along with Kyle Bruce and Clouthier he provides the steel fist of the Phoenix attack-his goals will rarely be as pretty as, say, a Mulherin but they'll be the kind of grubby, messy goals that win games. Especially cup finals.

3. Josh Garbutt (defence): Captain Kenton Smith is the blue-eyed boy of Manchester's defence (and with good reason-he's central to everything the Phoenix do and, dare I say it, reminds me somewhat of Neal Martin) but, as with Beauregard, you already knew of him, dear reader. Alex Dunn provides the terrier of the Phoenix defence, going about his job with much sound and fury and providing the perfect complement of sandpaper to Smith's almost otherworldly smoothness. But there has been much fanfare around the both of them, and sometimes, it's the quiet ones who are the ones you really have to watch.
Enter Josh Garbutt. The 5'10, 205lbs Albertan native has impressed me immensely every time I've seen him in action-he goes about his job with almost superhuman focus, eschewing the flashy passes, end-to-end rushes and stick-handling exhibitions in favour of doing the job of keeping the puck away from his goalie-a task which he performs very well indeed. Particularly of note to me was his awareness-every time you thought an opposition forward had found space in front of the net, the Phoenix #13 would come seemingly from nowhere and dog his steps, occasionally curling his mouth in a snarl and delivering a big hit or well-placed cross-check in order to "encourage" the intruder to find somewhere else to stand. His tally of 33 assists, only two behind the more-heralded Smith, shows that even though he keeps things simple at both ends, sometimes this pays dividends for both him and the players he sets up. Other players on the Phoenix may get more recognition, but few are more committed to the cause...

That's the teams. Now for the result...

PREDICTION

I've said all season that this Manchester team can win a trophy. Now is the time for them to prove it. Half the job is already done, but with the Giants on home ice and the game now in do-or-die territory, both teams will not give an inch...The Giants look like the stronger team, they're higher in the league, and I said as far back as pre-season that they were a team built to win trophies like this.

And yet...and yet...

I hate to think I may be jinxing them, but I genuinely believe this game is Manchester's to lose. The Giants will run them close-very close, but in Beauregard they have a player born to score trophy-winning goals, and in Tony Hand and/or Bruce Mulherin, they have to means to get him the puck when he needs it, despite Belfast's best efforts. Couple that with the fact that Stephen Murphy in the Phoenix goal has shown this season that, where necessary, he can go to the mythical sporting realm of the "other place", in which players win games by themselves whatever the opposition throw at them, and this prediction somehow feels right...

*deep breath*

Manchester to win, possibly in overtime. Beauregard to score the winner.

Good luck to both teams and their fans...

And hang on. As the song says, it's gonna be a wild ride...

And so we go into another week as the league season slowly dies a death...if you're looking for games that mean something this week, then focus your attention on those involving Belfast and Manchester, who contest the second leg of both cup finals in the next ten days, or Edinburgh and Hull, as their Crazy Eighth battle to steal the last playoff place from under the nose of the other reaches a climax this coming weekend. However, that's all to come-for now we look back at a weekend that saw trophies presented, banners raised, and both Crazy Eight teams ramp up the ante...

It seems that the fashion police were on holiday this week: First of all, a quick mention of the Sheffield Steelers fans, who were joined at the Hallam Arena on Sunday with the Monteith Bowl (which, having been presented the night before, was passed round the crowd so every fan got the chance to hold it), and, amongst other things, a living English breakfast, several wizards, a bunch of garden gnomes and possibly even a sheep or two. No, honestly. You can see them after the game highlights, briefly...

This was thanks to their opposition, the Cardiff Devils, whose fans had their annual end-of-season fancy-dress away trip, and, for their sins, were immortalised for posterity by SteelersTV...although personally the funniest bit of that clip for me is Rob Dowd desperately hunting around for a stepladder in an attempt to get high enough to punch Doug MacIver earlier on in the clip...

And so they fade away: Basingstoke are now on one of the longest loss streaks in British hockey history, as another weekend passes without a win, with an aggregate score of 15-2 in the two losses. This weekend it was Hull and Manchester doing the damage, 8-1 and 7-1 respectively, to Kevin Reiter's GAA...the Silverdome deserves far better than this.

Not the best way to give your fans hope, lads: Belfast, meanwhile, ended their home league season with a pair of defeats, as first Nottingham and then Coventry took the points from the Odyssey in the scramble for second spot behind Sheffield-the Giants, too, are a team who appear to be easing off briefly to catch their collective breath for a full-tilt charge at the playoffs...that wouldn't have made the losses any easier to take, though.

Speaking of fans losing hope..: The Skydome is not that nice a place to be at the moment, despite the Blaze appearing to be sitting fairly pretty in the league standings-mainly because the fanbase as a collective appear to have, if not turned against, at least turned slightly away from their team this season-you only have to read the comments on the forums to see that the final horn on next Sunday's game against Newcastle can't come soon enough for many. Even with the playoffs traditionally renewing hope somewhat, there is a consensus of opinion among their own crowd that the Blaze dragon is ripe for slaying by their playoff opponents, whoever they might be-I can't remember the last time a Skydome team was viewed with such a mixture of support underlaid by disappointment. Oh, yes I can-the 05/06 season...

It's crazy to think that a team in the top four could be unpopular with a lot of its own fans, but this, rightly or wrongly, is how things are for many in Coventry...failiure, it seems, is simply not an option...

(for the record, I wish that people would at least wait until the end of the season-after all, however unlikely you may think it is, Blaze fans, the PO trophy is still out there to be won...)

Meanwhile, in the middle of the pile..: ...Cardiff are finishing strongly, taking another four point weekend against Hull and Sheffield, while Newcastle settled for just two after beating Manchester on Sunday night following their loss to Sheffield on Saturday. Some measure of the importance placed on the game by the Steelers, however, can be gathered by the fact that Andrew Sharp was on the top-line all game, while Becky of our friends at Five Minute Major comments that Sunday's game against Manchester was "'ve never seen two teams care so little about the outcome of a game... Dullest. Game. Ever.". Which should tell you something...

They're going up in the world...last year it was just an auction...: In a masterpiece (ahem) of marketing, the Elite League have once again announced that there will be special "playoff" shirts produced for all teams this year, along with auctions of the puck used in every goal scored in the three EIHL games at the playoff weekend. Just like last year. However, clearly someone at EIHL Towers realises that, in these recession-hit times, even selling the same stuff as last year needs to be presented as something special to get people to part with cash...

So, I present to you a fine example of media sleight-of-hand...here's the only EIHL press-release announcing playoff weekend I could find for 2008...note the matter-of-factness...

And here's the one announcing the shirt auction (yes, that's the same format and stuff for sale as they ran for the All-Star Game) for 2009. Whoa, Nelly...did you know that stuff you bought in an auction was a "prize" and not a "purchase"?

Anyway, enough of my cynicism...over to Al Pacino for the final part of today's post...

"The inches we need are everywhere around us. They're in every break of the game, every minute, every second.
On this team we fight for that inch.
On this team we tear ourselves and everyone else around us to pieces for that inch. We claw with our fingernails for that inch.
Because we know when we add up all those inches, that's gonna make the f-ing difference between winning and losing! Between living and dying!"
Coach D'Amato's last speech, from "Any Given Sunday"

Both Hull and Edinburgh are now in the "Any Given Sunday" Zone of the season...and over the weekend both teams won one and lost one, meaning that Edinburgh still hold the advantage going into the final weekend of the season. Judging by the way the Caps played in Coventry on Sunday, it seems that these words were ringing in their heads on every shift-a fact equally true of Hull as they not only beat Basingstoke, but ripped them to shreds, led by Jeff Glowa...Next Sunday's game when the two meet in Hull could be the hottest ticket of the weekend. if not one of the hottest of the season...

Speaking of hot tickets-check back tomorrow, when we'll be running the rule, chapter and verse, over Belfast and Manchester's meeting in the CC Final...

And there you go-that's your weekend previewed...

Here we go with a preview of the weekend, but a bit of miscellany first...

"The writing's on the wall
And it won't go away...
It's an omen..."
Prodigy: "Omen"

In a move copied by...well, none of the other teams in the league (which is a little surprising in itself), and just when you thought you'd seen every special shirt there is to offer this season, the Blaze have announced they're going to be playing in St. Patrick's Day shirts this Sunday (basically, like the Christmas shirt, which was red for Christmas with a few bits of snow on it, they've created this by dyeing a normal one green and putting a few shamrocks on it) in a attempt to once again extract much-needed operating money from cash-strapped fa...

*receives high-voltage electroshock*

Sorry, provide fans with an opportunity to own a unique game-worn shirt, just like all the other "unique" ones out there in Blaze-land (this season alone there's been league, Conti Cup, Christmas, Valentine's Day (although in fairness, that one was presented as being for charity), and the soon-to-come playoff jerseys). Perhaps the cynicism of this ploy can be measured by the fact that even Belfast (last time I looked, the only EIHL team actually based in Ireland), weren't even commemorating their patron saint with one of their own-you'd have thought that one would be a tap-in...especially as it's done by many, many teams round about this period anyway.

Now, in the tradition of British hockey fans I may be putting two and two together and making five, but there were many rumours floating around the Skydome last week (from those connected with Blaze sponsors as well as just your average fan) saying that the credit-crunch and a fall in attendances from the peaks of two-to-four years ago had bitten much more deeply than anticipated at the Skydome already, and there could be "operational problems" going forward. Now, I have absolutely no idea what the finances are like, but I must admit that trying to drag yet more money out of people even as the season draws limply to a close (for all the "people asked for it and it just happened to come right this year" news releases) doesn't exactly fill me with scepticism regarding the rumours...

Onwards now, with another brief musical link...

"Mercy this and mercy that
Let justice prevail
But I just want my trophy back..."
Bat For Lashes: "Trophy"

With the EIHL title decided, this weekend is in danger of looking a little flat in comparison to many...at least if you look at the top, where the only excitement now is in teams playing for position in the playoffs...However, Andy French and the EIHL are wrong if, like Bat For Lashes, they wish the trophy wasn't being handed out this weekend, as it gives the opportunity for fans and bloggers like me to concentrate fully and deservedly on a battle which is far more enthralling than the trophy race ever was-the "Crazy Eighth" race for the last playoff position between Hull and Edinburgh...let's blast through the weekend now...

Friday

Belfast v Nottingham: A battle of the nearly men kicks off the weekend at the Odyssey, with both teams chasing the runner-up spot and the hope of an easier playoff game. It will of course be live on GiantsTV for five of your English pounds...

Saturday

Belfast v Coventry: The second home game of the weekend sees their traditional rivals from Coventry visit in a continuing battle for position which may only be decided on the final weekend of the regular season. For either team, this is a game that needs to be won, as much for psychological impact going into next weeks' showdown at the Skydome as anything else...and will also be on Giants TV on the link above...

Basingstoke v Manchester: After soaring with the eagles last weekend during a pulsating Challenge Cup final first leg, the Phoenix return to earth with a bump, making the fair-sized trip down to Hampshire to face a team dying on its feet in Basingstoke...with one of the Bison talismans, Greg Chambers rumoured strongly to be already on his way to Coventry next season, and Kevin Reiter supposedly close to following him, things don't look good for the Southerners, especially with the Phoenix on a high...

Sheffield v Newcastle: With the title won, this game is the opportunity for the Steelers to ease off slightly and celebrate the awarding of the trophy. However, there may be some mixed feelings in the Sheffield camp, as one of the major architects of their triumph, Jeff Legue, will be absent from now until playoff time at least-he has returned home to Canada to spend some time with his terminally ill father.
Newcastle, meanwhile, have nothing to play for-they are ensconced in seventh place with healthy gaps in both directions (although below them, Edinburgh are chasing hard) and will see this game as another one to get under the belt on the way to the serious business of the playoffs, with a hope of taking two points from the Steelers as they relax...

Cardiff v Hull/Nottingham v Edinburgh: Now for the important stuff. Both the Capitals and the Stingrays face tricky opposition in their first games of the weekend, both are away from home, and both desperately need the points. Of the two, however, Edinburgh are in the slightly better position-a loss in the East Midlands will not affect their league position, although if Hull win in South Wales it will bring the gap to one point and add a new intensity to the respective clubs' Sunday night games-every inch of ground Hull gain is one Edinburgh lose, and vice versa...and at this point in the season, spare inches are few and far between...

Sunday

Manchester v Newcastle: The Phoenix will be wary of the Vipers' physical style just two days before their Challenge Cup showdown in Belfast, but will want to go into that game on a winning footing. The Vipers, meanwhile, just want to make sure they keep the cushion between themselves and the Crazy Eight battle to a similar size...this won't be the most enthralling of games, but the points still matter nonetheless.

Sheffield v Cardiff: Quite honestly, the best you can say for this one is that it will hopefully continue the rivalry that has built up between the two clubs this season-with Cardiff still looking over their shoulders at Manchester in the battle for fourth spot, they perhaps have more to play for, but the Steelers are not going to let anyone spoil their banner-raising party, either. Tonight, though, the major action is elsewhere...

Coventry v Edinburgh: ...and the Skydome is probably the place where most of it can be found. The last meeting between the Blaze and the Capitals was a cracker, with fights, coaches ejected and a Blaze team given a very, very bad scare by a rampant Edinburgh before their mercurial forward Mark Hurtubise was tossed from the game. If the Caps number ten can hold his temper and run the game in the same dominant fashion he did last time, then the Scots could have a very real chance of two much-needed points...

Hull v Basingstoke:...points which are needed much more thanks to Hull facing the league whipping boys, Basingstoke, on their own ice. You have to back the Stingrays to take the points in this one, and turn up the heat on their Northern neighbours as the regular season races to a conclusion next weekend...

There you go-that's your weekend previewed.

Round the Rinks will be up later today...I'm finishing work early (lucky me) so hopefully should have it up by 3.30 or so...maybe 4pm to be safe...

"my capillaries scream, there's nothing left to feed on
my body needs a reason to cross that line
will you carry me there one more time?"
Dashboard Confessional: "Reason to Believe"

The astute among you (including Mark from the Angry Budgie) may have noticed that, during my Double Overtime column yesterday, there was the somewhat glaring omission of Sunday's first leg of the Challenge Cup final, involving Manchester and Belfast. As you will see from the excellent match report on The Angry Budgie, this was something of a large, almost Chris McAllister-sized omission given the circumstances, and clearly shows me up as a somewhat lax blogger...

Or does it?

Regular readers of the blog should know by now that I am something of a closet fan of the team from Altrincham-in fact I'd give them legitimate second-team status-and given that I've been plugging them as winners of a title pretty much all season, there was no way I was leaving their first genuine crack at an Elite League trophy to fall by the wayside in the middle of a weekly review of the weekend...Mainly because I really, really hope that Manchester hold their nerve after their 4-3 win on Sunday night, despite the prospect of Belfast's high-octane attack charging at them full bore...

But you're a Coventry fan-it means you lose another title! I hear you cry. Why? In the name of Brad Voth's hair extensions, why would you care who wins it now?

The reason is simple-Manchester deserve it. Over the past few seasons the Phoenix have been a model example of how to build a franchise from the ground up, and after being one piece away from being title winners last season, this season, everything appears to have clicked-with the sniper skills of David Beauregard allied to the defensive skills of Josh Garbutt, Alex Dunn and company and of course the ageless Tony Hand, the Phoenix this season are the team that most others, particularly those considered of a similar size, desperately want to be.

But why should that make any difference to me?

It's simple. Watching Coventry this season has made me lose just a little of my passion for hockey in Britain. Not for the game itself-I still get just as excited by moments like this as I used to (yes, he does play it off the boards to himself while skating backwards and then breaks away) but for the whole experience of it...this has been covered ad nauseam by me in many postings, so I'll leave that one well alone. Watching the Phoenix this season when they've come to Coventry has provided me with some of my best moments watching hockey from an opposition team, as well as one of the greatest finishes to a game I've ever seen (sorry, Manchester fans, for opening old wounds). And, with this season slowly petering out for Coventry (well, the playoffs are still an option, but they're a month away)-the Phoenix are now a team through which, vicariously at least, I can still experience the pure joy of a first title with.

And for that reason, I'm rooting for them relentlessly for the rest of the regular season...because they remind me of the Blaze five or six years ago, from the well-run organisation off-ice to the passionate family of a fanbase to the (more-or-less) unheralded team just starting their climb to the top. If history repeats itself for Manchester as it did for Coventry fans, then the Phoenix have one hell of a fun ride coming over the next few seasons...

And all the above was far too much to just slip into the middle of a league round-up...which, Mark and others, is why the barn-burner from Altrincham on Sunday barely got a mention yesterday...it gets a post all to itself...

Keep keeping your eye on the puck....

On we go into another skate round the weeks EIHL action, including one race in the EIHL that came to a sputtering stop and another that's suddenly accelerated dramatically...

"You're too much...(too much)

I take it that it's over.

Should we even care at all?

You're too much (too much)

Shake hands and say goodbye"

Friendly Fires: "Skeleton Boy"

Congratulations to Sheffield Steelers, EIHL League Champions 2008/09

God, that stung to write....:) The title race, which has been hanging around like a dying horse forgotten in the back garden of a knacker's yard, has finally been laid to rest, with Sheffield clinching the title on Sunday night thanks to a 4-1 win in Newcastle, and Coventry losing by the same score at home to Hull...to a surprising lack of fanfare from all concerned...well, unless you were outside Sheffield Arena around midnight (thank you, Steelers TV-may be distressing footage if you're a Panther fan) However, the race at the bottom of the league is still very, very much alive...so, let's congratulate the Steelers (by far the best team over the season) and move on to the rest of the league...

Final word, though...was it just me, or had the odd stray Blaze fan snuck into the Hallam car-park to be mickey-taken by Andrew Sharp (last twenty seconds of the clip)...

And yes, I'm a Blaze fan myself...I just thought I'd make that joke before anyone else did...:)

Scientists believe that this proves that being involved in a car-crash is not ideal pre-game preparation: On Saturday night, Andrew Verner was apparently involved in a minor car-crash on the way to the Telewest Arena for the Newcastle v Edinburgh game-despite this he declared himself fit to play...a decision which could have an impact on more than just his GAA average as he let in seven in the first twenty minutes in an eventual 9-2 win for Edinburgh. He didn't do too badly on Sunday, though, keeping Sheffield out for nearly 40 minutes and defending a one-goal lead valiantly before succumbing to the Steelers attack late in the second...

A very fitting memorial: The night before in Nottingham, meanwhile, had seen the Steelers not exactly in party mood as the Panthers beat them 4-2 in a pulsating game, full of incident. The tone was set even before face-off, as a packed NIC raised the roof with a minute's applause in remembrance of Dave Page and Owen Grant, who passed away last week as mentioned in Friday's weekend preview-then the teams got down to it with three fights, six goals and a ton of commitment...the Panthers clearly motivated by "win it for Dave" and the Steelers equally so by "win it for Owen". Goals for Johan Molin (twice), Brendan Cook and James Ferrara ensured that the Panthers did so...but British hockey was, by all accounts, the real winner...

One wonders whether they'll arrange to share-that would be the gentlemanly thing to do. But then, gentlemen don't play hockey: Belfast ensured that they will battle out both of the Elite League cup competitions with Manchester after easing through 4-1 in Cardiff on Saturday night to leave the Devils once again ruing the old truth "so close, yet so far". adage....

That rumoured cash injection can't come soon enough: Basingstoke are now the losingest team in British ice hockey, with their streak of losses extended by two more over the weekend as first Coventry (4-2) and then Nottingham (7-2) overturned their Hampshire rivals. With rumours now coming out that the Bison are being offered financial aid by the EIHL to not jump ship to the English Premier League, the future of the Hampshire club is still not cut-and-dried...

Cry havoc, and let loose the dogs of Hull!: Has someone woken up the Stingrays? After a 6-1 loss to Manchester on Saturday night, the Humbersiders, despite being delayed over an hour on the way into Coventry, played arguably the best game I've seen a Stingrays side play at the Skydome and were rewarded with a fairly comfortable 4-1 win. If you read anything Blaze-related regarding the game it will emphasis the lack of ideas of the home side, the seeming disinterestedness of many players and the many perceived failings of the Skydome-based team. And, up to a (small) point, these are decent summaries of the game. However, to emphasise the bad points (of which there were several) of Blaze's performance is to unfairly belittle the effort and skill put in by every player in a Stingrays shirt-Curtis Cruickshank was superb in goal, Antii Turunen was calm and assured in front of him and Matt Reynolds and Jason Kostadine worked tirelessly and very effectively indeed up front, never giving the Blaze defence any time and hurrying the forwards with their relentless back-checking-a theme replicated throughout the away side....

That's a brief Blaze view...for a pespective from Yorkshire, have a gander at the F-Block Blog...

"Fighting tooth-and-nail" doesn't begin to cover it...: Meanwhile, as Hull were winning down in Coventry to end their slim hopes of a title. Edinburgh were nicking a vital two points and adding to Cardiff's misery at the Bay, edging them 4-3 thanks to Sean Perkins' goal with 65 seconds remaining. Jason Cassells was the real architect of victory, however, scoring two of the Caps' four goals and assisting the winner, after appearing to find a willing and able compliment on his line in Brad Bonello, who joined the Caps at the same time in January...this means that Hull are now three points out of a playoff spot, with one game still to come between the two...which, by the way, is the last one of the regular season for both teams.

Winner takes all, anyone?

There you go...that's your weekend reviewed...

Here we are again with the weekend preview, with the weekend including a semi and a final...NOW we're really getting to the business end of the season...I am aware that Cardiff and Belfast played the first leg of their KO Cup semi on Wednesday and Manchester faced Edinburgh on Thursday, but we'll deal with that below...

Saturday:

Hull v Manchester: Before the fireworks of Sunday's Challenge Cup Final first leg, the Phoenix must take on Hull, with the Stingrays viewing every game between now and the end of the season as a cup final as they chase the last playoff spot in a battle with Edinburgh. Paradoxically, Manchester have already done Hull a favour by nicking a four-two win on Thursday night against their Scottish rivals (with David Beauregard scoring his 54th and 55th goals and moving within touching distance of being only the second player in the EIHL era to have a 100-point season-Adam Calder being the other with his record 105-point haul last season, including a record 58 goals, both records which are now under serious threat from the French-Canadian goal-machine). The Stingrays will be hoping Manchester have one eye on Sunday's game as they chase a vital two points, but I wouldn't be too hopeful for them...

Edinburgh v Newcastle: Meanwhile, the Capitals face the Vipers, with the Scottish faithful urged to be as loud as possible to help Mark Hurtubise (83 points on a ninth-placed team is simply phenomenal, by the way-he's outscored most of the "top" players in the EIHL by some distance-even more amazing when you consider that many of his competition have far more prolific linemates) and company gain another two vital points in their battle with Hull. With the Vipers settled in seventh with a ten point gap to the teams both above and below them, the Capitals will be hoping their opponents are in cruising mode for the playoffs. The Vipers, however, won't make it easy...

Basingstoke v Coventry: This is a game for two teams whose regular seasons have somewhat run out of steam, and despite there still being three weekends to go still has something of an "end of term" feel to it. With Corey Leclair facing one of his former teams there may be a bit of needle running under the surface, especially with Carlyle Lewis and Jeremy Cornish renewing acquaintances-however, it's not a game that stands out by any stretch of the imagination, especially with the Bison already looking towards next season in the eyes of many...

Nottingham v Sheffield: This one, however, is a game that practically leaps out and grabs you, although the hype machine has been absent this time round. The reasons for the relatively quiet buildup to this instalment of the "EIHL's premier rivalry" are tragic-both teams have seen well-respected figures at their respective rinks pass away this week, with the Panthers losing official photographer Dave Page to illness and the Steelers losing Owen Grant, the social secretary of the Sheffield Supporter's Club and a very well-known fan of the Steelers, within a day of each other. This means that this game will see something of a more reflective and sombre mood in the build-up than usual, with the Panthers planning commemorations for both men, and both sets of fans and all of British ice-hockey hoping that the game will be a fitting memorial to two stalwart supporters of the British game.
On the ice, Sheffield can bring themselves within one game of the league title with a win, but you can bet the Panthers would like nothing more than to delay the party a little longer...

Cardiff v Belfast: This KO Cup semi stands delicately poised at 3-3 after Wednesday's first leg in Northern Ireland, as the Giants begin a weekend dominated by Cup fever. The Devils will be heartened by a very good result in the first leg, and roared on by a sea of red, will hope to ensure passage through to face Manchester in the final. However, with the Giants proving to be something of cup specialists this season, this one is way too close to call...

Sunday

Newcastle v Sheffield: This, depending on Saturday's result, could be the title-clincher for the Steelers, and South Yorkshire is reportedly travelling en masse in anticipation. The Vipers have already publicly said, in the persona of Rob Wilson, that they intend to spoil the party, so this game could well be worth a watch if you're up that way...

Manchester v Belfast: The first of Manchester's two cracks at a Cup begins here, as the Challenge Cup is on the line. The Phoenix will want to take a lead over to Northern Ireland for the second leg on the 17th March, and with Altrincham likely to be packed out and roaring them on, David Beauregard, Tony Hand and co need no motivation. However, Paul Deniset, with an amazing record of three hat-tricks in three games in Altrincham, will be hoping to continue his scorching run and give his team the ideal cushion to take back to their home rink...

Coventry v Hull: The Stingrays need two points, desperately. Coventry, on the other hand, need a win just in case Sheffield start to panic and lose twice-if the Blaze lose, the title-race is definitely, unarguably over. Hull traditionally have not done that well at the Skydome-a trend they urgently need to reverse this weekend. The Blaze, on the other hand, just need to keep momentum up and keep giving their fans reasons to believe that the playoffs are a genuine title possibility-a faith which has been tested in recent weeks despite the team continuing to win...

Cardiff v Edinburgh: After the fireworks of the night before, a return to league action for the Devils against another opponent going hell-for-leather for points is probably not what the doctor ordered. Much will depend here on the result of the night before-if the Devils fail against Belfast, then the Capitals could be best placed to take advantage. Then again, they could also suffer a vicious backlash...

Basingstoke v Nottingham: Yet another in a long line of torrid nights could be in store for the Silverdome faithful, as Nottingham come to town either on a high from denying Sheffield their title celebrations or wounded, angry and eager to make amends. Either way, they are not an enticing opponent for a Bison team which, more and more, looks like they are simply marking time despite a few flashes of life sparked by Brent Hughes and Greg Chambers (Chambers leads the league in assists with 62, which tells you just how important a player he is in Hampshire)...

There you go-that's your weekend previewed...and good luck Manchester...

Evening all...a few things to look at in our lap of the British hockey world this evening...

The commentary alone should be worth it: The Giants webcast team will be broadcasting live from Dundonald this evening for their KO semi final against Cardiff, with Jason Rushton co-commentating, apparently. Even in these credit-crunch times, that's got to be worth at least thinking about spending a fiver for...you can find all the details here...

Born (well, selected) Torun: Yes, it's an awful, awful pun, but GB now has a preliminary squad for the World Championships this April, which will take place in this town in Poland...a town which is twinned with Swindon, no less.

The full squad is here, but rather than print it out fully, let's take a quick look by position, bearing in mind that seven of the thirty players will not be making the trip...the final squad will be announced in a few weeks.

Goalies:

The glaring name in this group is, of course, Sheffield's Jody Lehman, who is now GB-eligible after playing in Britain since the 02/03 season. There is no question after his performances this season (and indeed his whole tenure in Britain) that he is the best goaltender on the roster, and his being available for selection instantly strengthens the GB squad. Nathan Craze has played himself into contention this season, impressing in games against Coventry in particular-so really the "other" goalies in the squad could be any two from Murphy, Craze or Lyle, without really changing GB's overall strength at the position...certainly, this season at least, Craze and Lyle are comparable, with Murphy possibly slightly ahead.

Defence

The usual suspects here, although the inclusion of Mark Richardson, who has only recently moved back from forward, raises an eyebrow, especially over players like Luke Boothroyd and (to a lesser degree given his advancing years) Jason Stone. Leigh Jamieson also seems to be something of a golden boy, being selected despite a less-than-stellar couple of seasons in domestic play. Mark Thomas is a welcome addition, while Ben O'Connor should consider himself very hard done by if his name is not already in the final 23 after his performances for Coventry, Edinburgh and Basingstoke over the past season or two. Graeme Walton is also another who should expect to travel however the rest of the pack is shuffled...

Forwards

No Matt Towe? Not even in the preliminary thirty? This one earns the highest raise of eyebrows from me, given that the rest of the crop of forwards can all justify their reasons for being there...however, given a choice between Jason Hewitt and the Cardiff Devil, the "British Bulldog" as Dave Simms and no-one else knows him, would be the one forced out. Rob Dowd continues his meteoric rise this season by becoming the first player in that crop you look at and say "he simply has to be picked"-quite an achievement in the company of such GB stalwarts as David Longstaff, Colin Shields and Ashley Tait, as well as dual-nationals like Steve Thornton and Greg Chambers.

Overall, it's not much of a departure, with most names being predictable despite there arguably being several youngsters who have really pushed themselves forward this year and perhaps should feel aggrieved at not even being considered...definitely a case of evolution not revolution...

However, as any gardener will tell you, sometimes you just have to turn round and chop down a rotten tree, as there's only so much pruning and modifying you can do to it before it reaches a level where it will no longer improve or may even decay. Paul Thompson and his team have spent the past year or so desperately cutting back the dead branches and trying to keep the GB tree looking as good as possible despite the ailments at its roots and its aging trunk and backbone...maybe, after this World Championships, it's time to chop the whole thing down nd start again from the ground up...and if that means ending the international careers of a few who until now were considered almost sure picks, every time, then so be it...

And on that thought...here ends this week's Midweek Musings...

Two things to get out the way first...including some very sad news indeed for British hockey,

Dave Page, Nottingham Panthers' official photographer for many years, and a well-known figure in British hockey, has passed away suddenly, having been admitted to hospital nine days ago. The Panthers have announced it officially here, with the Cardiff Devils posting a tribute on their site also. Mr Page's photo's are arguably the best ever produced of British hockey, and the sport has lost a true friend...condolences go to his family...

Hold on, I'm not done yet...

I need to apologize to the city of Manchester...

For some obscure reason last week I thought that the Phoenix still had the semi of the Challenge Cup to play...they are of course in two finals, not one, halving the odds against my prediction coming true...which is one I still hold to despite them falling victim to Coventry in their only game of the weekend...

Anyway, onto the weekend...beginning with a defence of one of the league's premier misunderstood geniuses...

"You got a piece of me....and, honestly...
My life (my life) would suck (would suck) without you..."
Kelly Clarkson: My Life (Would Suck Without You)

Ryan Finnerty isn't one of those players who thrives on the roar of the crowd. Well, not roars of adulation, anyway...when EIHL fans are asked which player in their league they hate the most, the name of the Lethbridge, Alberta native always comes at or very near the top of the list. This may well be due to the fact that he's a past-master at being a wind-up merchant, is never averse to getting his nose dirty, or simply because he seems to cause more irritation to opposition fans and players than a sandpaper suppository, without seemingly trying.

Here in Coventry he's particularly unpopular, mainly due to the fact that he always seems to play well against the Blaze, as well as an infamous (well, in Coventry anyway) Youtube clip in which he ( mildly) mocks Blaze fan favourite Adam Calder after Sheffield's playoff win last season...

At this point you'd expect me, as a Coventrian, to toe the party line of "Finner is a muppet"-and I freely admit that sometimes, as with the ridiculous Cardiff feud with Jay Latulippe earlier this season, which I commented about at length, he's the kind of player that can make even his team's most fervent fan wince...

I've never liked being predictable, though...

Ryan Finnerty is one of the best players in the league...and one of my favourites...

Not only that, but (and we'll leave aside the debates on whether the chance should have arisen for later) he finished beautifully to win Steelers the game.

But aside from this-he's a player that the league needs desperately, precisely because he divides opinion so massively. If you're looking for a forward to never be out-worked, play with a fair bit of skill to go with a gift for irrating the opposition and score your team goals when they most need them, then Finnerty is probably one of the first names on the hypothetical team-sheet-he's proof that pure skill is good, but a few ragged edges combined with a genius for irritation and a fearless attitude is just as good as pure skill, if not better...

And that's why he's become the franchise player of arguably the biggest club in the league, and will be so sought after if and when he decides that he may fancy a change from Sheffield...

Now onto the rest of the league weekend...

Well, we wanted a barn-burner, and we got one...: Coventry v Sheffield on Sunday saw three fights, a coach ejected for hurling sticks onto the ice in his best Ed Courtenay impersonation, and Sheffield setting themselves up for a high-point in Steelers hockey, the likes of which hasn't been seen for several years-they could, potentially, win the title in Nottingham this coming Saturday. I'd try and describe the game, but it's probably better just to watch the highlights, courtesy of BlazeTV, and make up your own mind about the highly controversial second and third Steelers goals and also Michael Hicks' refereeing performance...

The kitchen sink survived only due to being bolted down: However, one thing that highlight package does omit is the fusillade of equipment thrown from the Coventry bench as Paul Thompson did his best Steve Backley impression in disgust at the play being allowed to continue as long as it did (in fairness, he has a point-the incident is at 7 minutes into the highlights and Doug Sheppard is so close to Erik Hjalmarsson as he goes round the back of the net and falls to lose the puck and give the chance in the first place, that the Steeler would probably be arrested for lewd behaviour in several American states)...

Scoring is all very well, lads...but you may need to play some defence occasionally: Belfast appear to be making a habit out of big scores...after recently scoring eight yet conceding five against Basingstoke, this weekend it was the Hull Stingrays' turn to have a superb offensive night and still lose, as the Giants beat them 8-6 at the Odyssey.

Even Giants need rest occasionally: However, it wasn't all rosy for Belfast as their run of four games in five nights finally took its toll on them in Edinburgh, with the Capitals nicking a 4-2 win for a crucial two points in their chase of Hull for the last playoff spot...

"Anything you can do..." is actually a Hull proverb, you know...: Well, it isn't (at least as far as I'm aware) but it might as well be-the Stingrays reacted to their rivals' win against a top four team at home by...well, winning against a top four team at home. Nottingham were the unwilling victims this time round, as the Stingrays conceded four at Hull Ice Arena but put six past Michel Robinson at the other end (technically, five and an empty-netter, but let's not split hairs)...and made the battle at the bottom of the table, as it was last season, far more interesting going into the final month of the season than that at the top...

Two points is better than none: Manchester, meanwhile, as mentioned above, lost their only game of the weekend in Altrincham, thanks to the Blaze hitting form and (we thought then) giving themselves a springboard into Sunday's game...

We'll call that one even, then...: Meanwhile, Cardiff and Newcastle split their double-header, each winning their home legs. Quite what you'd expect from two teams who, seemingly, are stronger at home than on their travels this season...

There you go...that's your weekend reviewed and a little bit of opinion thrown in for free...

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