SHEFFIELD, U.K. – The Sheffield Steelers had a mixed weekend once again, after suffering a 4-2 loss away to the Fife Flyers on Saturday, before making amends with an impressive 2-1 victory over the Belfast Giants at the Motorpoint Arena on Sunday.
Steelers suffer mixed fortunes at the weekend
The Steelers firstly made the arduous journey all the way up to Scotland to take on the Fife Flyers in league action.
Both teams came out strong in the first period and shared 18 shots between them, but neither team could convert ensuring a 0-0 first period.
Steelers new NHL-signing 6’5 Tom Sestito made an impact early in the second period when he broke the deadlock and fired home after a nice pass from Colin Shields at 21:38, making it 1-0.
Fife pressed and were soon on level terms courtesy of 26-year-old Calgary Flames draft pick Kris Hogg, who netted his fifth goal of the season at 23:27, making it 1-1.
The Steelers responded with a flurry of shots in the second period, only to be kept at bay by the Flyers impressive goaltender Bryan Pitton.
The hosts took the lead for the first time in the game at 32:16 when kris Hogg was on hand to convert from a neat John Dolan pass, to make it 2-1.
Philadelphia Flyer lockout out player Tom Sestito was assessed his first penalty of the season from referee Neil Wilson, who handed him a 2-minute minor for boarding.
With Sestito in the box, the hosts were gifted their second powerplay of the game, looking to extend their lead further. Fife did just that when Kris Hogg recorded a natural hat trick as he netted his third of the game at 38:58 to make it 3-1.
The Steelers came out strong in the first period with a resurgent effort trying to claw their way back into the game. The Steelers out shot the Flyers 11-4 in the final period, and converted one of those shots courtesy of Jeff Legue as he netted his eight of the season to bring the game to within a goal at 49:15.
With little over two minutes remaining local boy Steve McAlpine put the final nail in the Steelers coffin as he netted the Flyers fourth goal of the game at 57:59 to make it 4-2, and to ensure the Flyers took the two points on offer.
The Steelers were back in action 24-hours later on home ice, taking on current league leaders the Belfast Giants.
The Giants were soon off the mark courtesy of Craig Peacock with a fortuitous goal on the powerplay to make it 1-0 at 3:01.
The Steelers had their own powerplay opportunity with Giants defenceman Sam Roberts sitting out two minutes for a cross check.
The Steelers took advantage of this when Tom Sestito was on hand to lodge home a rebound from an initial Jeff Legue shot at 11:28 making it 1-1.
Two man of the match performances for new boy Sestito (Image courtesy of Dean Woolley)
The South Yorkshire side came out firing early in the second period, and only 19 seconds of the period had elapsed when former NHL’er Steve Goertzen fired home a Tom Sestito rebound from close range at 20:19 to take the lead 2-1.
At 37:36 the towering forward Tom Sestito recorded a ‘Gordie Howe Hat trick’ as he added a fight to his goal and assist, to claim the prestigious hockey honour.
The Giants’ former NHL’er Greg Stewart and the Steelers Jeff Legue exchanged pleasantries before Sestito took offence to the Giant forward harassing the much smaller Legue.
The two combatants dropped the gloves just in front of the Steelers bench with Sestito controlling the fight throughout and catching Stewart off guard with a powerful flurry of lefts at the end.
Sestito was also assessed an extra 2+10 instigator penalty on the play, which not only perplexed the Steelers bench but also the 4099 fans in attendance.
Both teams came out strong in the third period, with the visitors having the better chances and generally controlling the play more.
The goaltending duo of John DeCaro and Stephen Murphy of Sheffield and Belfast respectively, thwarted the opposition’s chances with some fine saves.
At 58:39 the Giants pulled netminder Murphy in favour of an extra attacker, with the move almost backfiring as Jeff Legue hit the post with an impressive backhand effort from his own defensive zone with 30 seconds remaining.
The Steelers held firm after a late barrage from the Giants as the final buzzer sounded, ensuring that Sheffield would claim the two points in an impressive win over their table-topping rivals.
Sestito trades blows with Greg Stewart (Image courtesy of Dean Woolley)
Steelers Head Coach Ryan Finnerty offered his thoughts after the game, “ It was a must win night for us, we played it simple, didn’t get away from our systems and everyone saw the kind of team we can be”, Finnerty said.
“Of course Tom will get the headlines and rightly so, but other guys tonight dug deep. Steven Goertzen was excellent and Lee Esders again showed why we rate him so highly, with Belfast pulling their goalie we had Esders out there in the final seconds, that’s because he is the best man for that job,” Finnerty added.
Contact the author at Scott.antcliffe@prohockeynews.com
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