Tripp still smiling after Clan’s Panther attack
BRAEHEAD Clan may have exited the Challenge Cup after defeat to Nottingham Panthers, but head coach John Tripp admits his disappointment was tempered by the performance his team put in against the EIHL league leaders.
“It wasn’t too disappointing to be eliminated – as long as I see a performance like that, I’m happy,” the Canadian said.
“The first period was one of the best periods of the year.
“We played very smart structurally and that’s what I wanted from the team.
“Unfortunately we couldn’t hold that pace but nonetheless, that’s the positive to take from that game. It’s nice to see it come together, it’s now just a matter of getting it consistent.”
Braehead bounced back quickly from their 5-1 Cup loss though, defeating Guilford Flames 3-2 on home ice to close the gap on their English counterparts to just one point.
“It was a good game – they’re a very hard-working team,” said Tripp.
“Early on, we made some silly errors that we don’t usually on the penalty kills but then we made a couple of line changes because we were looking for a little more physicality and we got that.”
It was a timely victory as tomorrow, club owner Neil Black will make a rare appearance in Scotland as he takes part in a fan Q&A.
Tripp will have the opportunity to chat face-to-face with Black and with Braehead sitting in 10th position in the EIHL having had a less than stellar season, there could be a little pressure coming from the owner to improve results. However, Tripp remains entirely unaffected and insists that all the pressure he self-inflicted.
“I have a job up to do and that’s my main focus,” he said. “I don’t feel any extra pressure from him.
“I put pressure on myself for each game and so who’s watching doesn’t affect that.
“As a player, I was always very hard on myself and I believe that if you don’t put pressure on yourself, it’s very difficult to get where you want to go. He’s not hands-on in the dressing room.” feels is