Glasgow Clan put Belfast Giants’ hopes of winning the title this weekend on ice with a 3-1 win at the SSE Arena on Saturday night.
This result means that the Giants cannot secure the league crown this weekend, regardless of other results or what happens on Sunday.
“It was good. We know going down the stretch now we’re going to have to bring it every night, so let’s hope we can do it again tomorrow,” said Clan’s Brady Risk.
Early pressure from Glasgow was rewarded as they got the opener on the powerplay after Mike Lee was penalised for cross-checking. Brady Risk’s shot from the slot was saved by Jake Kupsky, however he couldn’t do anything to deny Risk putting in the rebound to give the Clan the lead at 08:47.
The Giants equalised shortly after through JJ Piccinich. David Goodwin’s shot from the slot was saved by Sami Aittokallio, with Piccinich scoring the rebound at 14:06 to level the game.
Glasgow went ahead for the second time, with Tristan Langan getting the goal. An excellent solo run through the neutral zone and into the Giants’ defensive zone resulted in Langan’s shot being saved from the slot, however he reacted quickly to score the rebound from a tight angle at 23:18.
The Clan got their third of the night after a mistake from the Giants presented Robert Lachowicz with a breakaway, with only Kupsky to beat. Lachowicz was clinical, finishing well through Kupsky’s five-hole at 30:59, prompting the Giants to call a timeout.
The Giants had two powerplay chances to get themselves back into the game but came up short both times. Indeed, the best opportunity fell to Clan’s Chris McKay, who failed to convert when through one-on-zero with Jake Kupsky. The Giants’ goalie left the net with 2:29 to go, but the home side couldn’t find another goal and were beaten by two.
“I think we’ve had the confidence all year. It’s just been a matter of putting the performances together, but we’ve beaten all the big teams, we just need to stick with it and get up to standards,” added Risk. “I think we know it’s possible that we could end up in Belfast in the playoffs, and yeah it’s nice to win, so let’s hope we can do it again tomorrow.”
Photo: William Cherry