Keith keen for Clan to repeat Euro adventure

FORMER Braehead Clan captain Matt Keith may have played in the NHL, but he still believes the Champions Hockey League was something special during his time in Glasgow.

It was five years ago to the day when Clan returned from their great adventure, having had a baptism of fire in European competition taking on Swedish champions Vaxjo Lakers and German side Ingolstadt as a reward for a second-place finish in the Elite League.

“It was a big thing for us to be involved in those games, we took a lot of pride in it,” said Keith, once of the Chicago Blackhawks. “Our team were still coming together and I remember we picked up Chris Bruton at Heathrow Airport on the way to Vaxjo.

“We didn’t even skate as a group until the morning of the game, while Vaxjo had been training for weeks, which became apparent. We went in blind and prepared as best we could, but we were hit with a 10-2 loss.

“Those were big games in a competition where you were able to go and put yourself up there. From that point of view, it was fantastic. We talked about it a lot at the start of that season and it didn’t matter where you played before. We were the Braehead Clan and we wanted to show ourselves well against those top teams.”

For their second away game in three days, Clan flew to Ingolstadt, where Keith had played in 200809.

“I was looking forward to returning to Ingolstadt,” he said. “It was fun to go back and as a team, we were better prepared. We were determined not to let what happened in Sweden happen again and I really thought we could have won that game. I scored to put us in front, but we ended up losing. However, we made such a better account of ourselves. “The first two games can shape you as a team. So losing 10-2, then performing a lot better in a 5-2 defeat showed we wouldn’t be pushed over.”

Indeed, there was so much they took from the game, they beat the Germans 6-4 in Glasgow.

“It would be huge for the Clan to get back to that competition and anything that can help an organisation become more well known is important,” Keith said. “It attracts players, grows the fan base and the rewards can be great.

“Having a chance to compete in the Champions League every year is huge and that’s the target I’m sure for the Clan. Being there again would be massive.”