Flyers must not fear Devils at Finals Weekend, says Hutchins

ice hockey: Fife ‘have nothing to fear’

Fife Flyers have been praised for their heroic efforts in reaching the Elite League Finals Weekend – and assistant coach Jeff Hutchins said the players were inspired by a previous comeback against Manchester Storm.

The Kirkcaldy side are through to the last four for the third time in their history, having booked their spot in breathtaking fashion down south on Sunday.

They were 4-1 down after the first leg on home ice but stunned Storm with a stunning 5-1 sudden death overtime victory to seal a meeting with top seeds Cardiff Devils.

But Hutchins revealed it wasn’t the first time the Flyers had produced the goods this campaign against Patton Conference champions Manchester.

Last November Fife were down 5-1 but bounced back to score three unanswered goals between the 31st and 34th minutes and added another four to win 8-6.

Hutchins said: “Saturday is a completely new ball game. Cardiff are a quality side but we’ve played some close games against them but our players can achieve what they want to achieve.”

Meanwhile Hutchins said that Devils – who finished the Elite League season 17 points ahead of Flyers – hold no fear for the Kirkcaldy club.

The men from Wales also hold a 3-1 series advantage over Fife, having won 4-1 in Wales and 5-3 and 4-3 at Rosslyn Street.

“There is no team in the league that we don’t believe we can beat,” he said.

“This is a one-off clash before a full house at Nottingham, something our men will relish.

“Everyone associated with Fife – coaches, directors and fans – were so proud of the players’ never-say-die approach against Storm. We didn’t make many changes after Saturday’s 4-1 defeat.

“The puck did not drop for us and we found ourselves down but the guys continued to believe. We reminded them it was a six-period game and they were rewarded for their effort on Sunday.”

Hutchins was also delighted to break what he joked was a curse.

He told the BBC: “I’ve been to the finals a couple of times as a player, but this is my first as a coach and I joked with (head coach) Todd (Dutiaume) I must be a curse after we lost on Saturday.

“He kept saying we would do it and told me after the curse was broken, so I do believe that we’re a team that can win a two-game tournament.

“There’s nothing but belief in this team and although Cardiff are our opponents, we’ve ran them close and even beat them, scoring eight past them in one game.

“We don’t fear our next opponent and the guys approach every game the same way. They’re excited and after all we’ve accomplished, this would be the icing on the cake.”

Flyers have the preferred face-off time in the semi-final – 1pm – which allows the maximum amount of recovery time.

Sheffield Steelers take on Nottingham Panthers at 5pm. The losing semi-finalists meet in the third/fourth place play-off match on Sunday at noon, with the Grand Final facing-off at 4pm.