EPL Week 23 round up

SWINDON, UK –

Midweek already and the Wildcats were beaten by Slough and to rub salt into the wound the following evening the Bees picked up a critical point at Guildford thereby extending the lead over the Swindon team to three points for the last play-off place.
In the EPL Cup you probably stood back in amazement at what happened to the Phoenix in the first leg as they went down 8-2 at home to the Lightning, making it almost impossible for them to rise from the dead to go further.

Jets’ coach Pete Russell complained about his team facing six games in eight days, concluding with the Phoenix next Sunday, and including three games against the Flames who, unlike the Jets have the luxury of six imports to juggle and rest. Russell has a fair point, of course, but the league was having none of it insisting the fixtures stand. On the positive side, Russell also pointed out the confidence boost if they should fare well over the coming week.
Friday and the press were reporting expected trouble at the upcoming Phantoms-Raiders game as a result of last week’s confrontation where several Peterborough players refused the invitation to drop the gloves. While some sources rattle sabres and make silly accusations about lack of mettle, you have to consider a couple of points: the Phantoms don’t have too many players available for serious penalty-taking just at the moment, so even a single player receiving a game ban just to prove some point or other is a percentage dent they can ill afforded, and, as we all know, penalties cost points anyway. Now while the Raiders have a much bigger PiM tally, some two hundred more than the Phantoms, both are adequately represented in the Top Penalty Takers chart, so you have to wonder if the warnings are going to fall on deaf ears.
Saturday’s games saw the Bison take a second-minute lead against the Bees and then go on to win comfortably. With the Wildcats not playing, the Bees remain those three important points ahead in the race for the last play-off place.
Julian Smith returned for the Phantoms having recovered from a broken finger but the team is still short-handed. But, undeterred, the Phantoms came back against the Jets from a 2-goal disadvantage to equalise two minutes from time with James Morgan claiming the overtime winner. Not a good start to the Jets crammed week, but it has to be said, the Phantoms are going through an, er, interesting period with some terrific performances, and some impressive defeats, not to mention the officiating debacle at Sheffield that saw new coach Tim Peacock receive a 2+10 plus game, set and match, so a full hand, subsequently extended to three games by the league basically for attempting to exercise his right to speak to the ref. So you can’t help but root for them.

Paul Dixon and Martin Masa celebrate (Photo Alan Bone)

Guildford go marching on – just. In a gritty performance at Sheffield the Flames came from 6-3 down in the third period despite a first-minute opener to take the game in the penalty shoot-out for the third time this season, with a winner by Martin Masa. The win took them up a place in the post regular time games chart to number seven, still dominated by the Wildcats with ten such overtime games.
Meanwhile the Lightning not so much as marched on as romped along with an 8-4 win at Romford. But maybe the Raiders are saving themselves for Sunday and their next game against the Phantoms after the publicity in the week that the Peterborough team are just not up to snuff when it comes to the Drop-Glove Tango. The Phantoms, no doubt, will want to show they have what it takes when it comes to standing up and being counted. Could be interesting.
And so on to Sunday’s games, and you have to wonder what the heck is happening to the Phoenix with a second home nose-dive in less than a week, this time against the Bison, as they fight a rearguard action at the top of the league only to see the spread open up to a worrying thirteen points. This was helped, of course, by the Lightning winning at home to Sheffield. Bison, who have now made it five straight wins, but more importantly at this stage of the game for the first time in Manchester, went two goals up only to see Canadian Ed Courtenay score twice to equalise in the second period, but it wasn’t enough.
Despite their problems Peterborough had a profitable weekend picking up four points, although once again not taking the easy route. The Raiders were seriously short of players, and to their credit did not succumb to the glut of penalties anticipated by some fielding just nine vital bodies on the ice and two in the net. Amazingly, they were actually leading after forty, but nine men were always likely to find the going tough as the game wore on.  
The Bees clashed with the Wildcats in a battle for that final spot, and wiped them out coming from a two-goal deficit in a ten-minute barrage of five goals, including a penalty shot, so pretty well assuring them of the final play-off place.
And then there were the Flames who, after six wins and forty goals, lost at home to the Jets who finish the weekend two vital points closer to the leaders but still seven off. Jets Slovakian forward Blaz Emersic did most of the damage completing a hat-trick with the first sixteen minutes, by which time it really was all over.
That means the top teams are spreading out and what was four contenders going into the final weeks, is looking more like three. Or is it? If you consider the top two, Lightning and Jets, have a game in hand but also have nine games remaining against top four teams while the Flames have seven, and Manchester, bottom of the four, just six. Add to the mix the Lightning in previous games have been strong against the Flames, but not so against the Jets, who have been strong against the Phoenix. Er. So, does this all point to anything other than it could all get very tight at the end?
Or not.
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Contact the author Bill.Collins@Prohockeynews.com