SHEFFIELD, U.K. – The Sheffield Steelers only picked up a point out of a possible four on offer after two losses against the Coventry Blaze over the weekend.
Brad Day in fine form once again (Image courtesy of Dean Woolley)
Once again Blaze netminder Brian Stewart would be pivotal for his side over the weekend as would Steelers backup netminder Brad Day who has deputised for injured goalie Marek Pinc in the last four games.
On Saturday the Steelers hosted the Blaze but despite good possession and outshooting the Blaze 30-25 the Blaze ran away 3-2 victors after a shootout.
The Steelers would threaten first with recent addition Ryan Hayes testing Stewart at 1:21 with a good low leg pad save.
The visitors countered and soon broke the deadlock courtesy of the in-form Brett Robinson who netted a great cross crease pass from Brenden Walker at 1:41 to give his side a 1-0 lead.
At 08:43 Robinson came close to sealing a brace when he fired a sublime wristshot on net, only to be spurned by a great glove save from Huddersfield-born Brad Day. The save drew a crowd in front with Kevin Noble looking for a loose puck after the whistle, which subsequently led to Steelers rugged defenceman Zack Fitzgerald taking exception.
Ben O’Connor gives the Steelers a 2-1 lead with a neat effort (Image courtesy of Dean Woolley).
The Steelers pressed and almost levelled when Zack Fitzgerald found Captain Jonathan Phillips in the slot with a great pass, and the skipper fired a one-timer destined for the top right corner, but was thwarted after an incredible rolling leg pad save from Stewart. The save would have undoubtedly made an NHL highlight reel.
Shortly after Mathieu Roy was on the forecheck and managed to intercept an errant Mike Quesnele pass and raced in on a breakaway. Roy then fired a well-placed powerful wristshot under the blocker of Stewart to tie the game up 1-1 at 14:27.
Quesnele made up for his blunder just over two minutes later when he blocked a Jonathan Phillips shot in the crease destined for the net with Stewart beaten at 16:48.
Both teams started the second period strongly with both Steelers defenceman Cullen Eddy and Blaze forward Drew Fisher sharing early chances.
The Steelers took the lead for the first time in the game courtesy of Great Britain international Ben O’Connor who skated in from the blueline after a Roy faceoff win and faked a slapshot which fooled Stewart, and with the netminder committed O’Connor showed good composure to skate around him and fire the puck low past him to give his side a 2-1 lead at 31:47.
The visitors rallied and had the hosts on the back foot with a string of chances from Noble, Cowley and Pietrus ensuring Brad Day had to be on his game to keep the visitors at bay.
The Blaze pressure paid off when Brett Robinson was on hand once again to deflect a shot past Day close range at 39:18 to level the game at 2-2. Despite protests from the Steelers for a high stick referee Tom Darnell allowed the goal to stand.
A frantic third period saw chances for both teams, despite five powerplay chances including a 5-on-3 the hosts couldn’t find a way past the outstanding Stewart in between the pipes for the Blaze.
No further scoring followed in the third period, and after five minutes of overtime the scoreline remained 2-2 ensuring that the game would be settled on a shootout.
Steelers forwards’ Tyler Mosienko and Ryan Hayes couldn’t find a way past Stewart and with both Drew Fisher and Jordan Pietrus scoring from their attempts the Blaze would pick up two points and Sheffield just the one point.
The two teams battled it out once again 24-hours-later in a packed Skydome Arena.
A fast paced start to the game saw American winger Ryan Hayes with the first shot on goal, Stewart had to be alert to make a great double leg pad save at 1:08.
At 3:14 there was a scramble in front of the Blaze goal with Mathieu Roy on the doorstep hovering for a loose puck, only to be denied by the excellent Brian Stewart.
Jordan Pietrus edges the Blaze ahead 2-1 in the early stages of the second period (Image courtesy of Scott Wiggins).”
At 4:08 the game turned feisty, when Jason Hewitt and Mike Quesnele exchanging pleasantries. Blaze forward Jordan Pietrus took exception and dropped the gloves with Hewitt in front of the team benches.
Boris Valabik and Zack Fitzgerald of Coventry and Sheffield respectively, paired off and traded gloved punches and face washes and received coincidental double minors for roughing.
Former Steeler James Jorgensen came close with a one timer after a great Ross Venus pass at 8:51 forcing a good blocker save from Brad Day.
The Steelers were the first to get on the scoreboard at 18:37 with skipper Jonathan Phillips on a breakaway after a great stretch pass from Rod Sarich, Phillips rounded Stewart and showed great composure as he buried it top shelf much to the delight of the travelling fans.
The celebrations were short lived when James Jorgensen came back to haunt his former team with a rocket of a slapshot from the left wing slot to make it 1-1 with just 62 seconds remaining in the opening period.
A timely goal for the Blaze saw them go into the period break level and change the dynamic of the game heading into a crucial second period.
The hosts came out for the second period fired up and were soon on the scoreboard courtesy of influential forward Jordan Pietrus who fanned on a shot which fooled Day and bobbled past him at 23:17 to give his side a 2-1 lead.
The Steelers would run into penalty trouble in the second period and soon found themselves defending a 5-on-3 with Zack Fitzgerald and Ben O’Connor picking up minor penalties and Rod Sarich picking up a misconduct after remonstrating his frustrations with referee Stefan Hogarth at 30:03.
The Blaze fired a barrage of shots at Day on the subsequent 5-on-3 powerplay with Brett Robinson forcing a great glove save from Day with a wrist shot from the slot at 30:36.
Coventry Blaze Head Coach Chuck Weber called an opportune timeout to rally his troops. The shrewd move paid dividends as the Blaze extended their advantage when a Jordan Pietrus blast from the point went five-hole past Brad Day after traffic in front of his net at 51:06 to make it 3-1 to the hosts.
The Blaze well and truly had the Steelers on the back foot when Jorgensen added his second of the game at 32:07 as he snuck into the right wing slot and fired low past Day to make it 4-1.
Frustrations began to get the better of the visitors and at 36:44 Zack Fitzgerald made a beeline for Jordan Pietrus and the pair dropped the gloves in front of Brian Stewarts net.
Veteran defenceman Fitzgerald took the plaudits in the bout with a flurry of rights which put Pietrus down and required the Blaze forward to have repair work in the locker room with just over three minutes remaining in the second period.
The Blaze started the third period strongly and absorbed some early Steelers pressure well. Pantomime villain Kevin Noble blocked a goal bound shot from Cullen Eddy in the opening minute of the period.
In search of his hat trick, Blaze defenceman James Jorgensen fired a rocket from the blueline on the PP into the chest of Day at 46:10.
Both teams offered chances in the third period, but the Blaze were happy to subdue any Steelers pressure and kill the game off with a workman like performance.
Jim Jorgensen scores a brace against his former team (Image courtesy of Scott Wiggins)
At 58:26 the hosts added the final nail to the Steelers coffin with Mike Quesnele rattling a shot past Day at 58:26 on the powerplay after a nice feed from Ashley Tait to give the Blaze a commanding 5-1 lead.
With just 14 seconds of the game remaining frustrations came to the fore once again with Cullen Eddy and Cale Tanaka exchange slashes in front of the Steelers bench. Sheffield blueliner Eddy dropped his gloves but Tanaka didn’t follow suit. Eddy, realising Tanaka had no intentions of fighting back showed mercy on his opponent and despite having his gloves off didn’t throw a punch showing good sportsmanship.
The clock ticked down ensuring that the Blaze took the victory at the final buzzer and put a serious dent in the Steelers title hopes with back-to-back victories and securing their status as the Steelers bogey team for the 2015/16 season.
The Steelers next face the Belfast Giants away on Tuesday before hosting them on Saturday the 6th of February, and then a return trip to Coventry to take on the Blaze 24-hours-later in which is sure to be another feisty affair.
You must be logged in to post a comment.