Giants win to remind Steelers of triple threat

SO far this season, Sheffield Steelers have had it all their own way – something purely down to the quality that seeps through the entire team.

After all, you don’t become league and Challenge Cup winners in the same season by chance.

But Steelers’ head coach Aaron Fox believes a ‘message’ was sent to his team by Belfast Giants on the closing weekend of the Elite League regular season, one that started on Friday with a 4-3 win in overtime for the visitors before their hosts responded to take the second game 4-1 at the SSE Arena.

The Steelers may have ruled all before them so far in 2023-24 but it will clearly not be easy for them to emulate the Giants’ treble achievements from last season and add the play-off trophy to the two pieces of silverware they already have in their possession.

“They were two really, really good games of hockey with two very good hockey teams,” said Fox.

“Belfast played physical all weekend long, you could tell that a message had been sent from that group and I thought they answered and they played very well.”

On Saturday it was another nipand-tuck encounter, so much so that the deadlock wasn’t broken until the third period.

It was Scott Allen who did so, putting the Steelers ahead at 46.04, although the lead didn’t last for long with Greg Printz levelling just 90 seconds later.

When the Giants went ahead just four minutes later it was in controversial circumstances. Steelers’ Colton Saucerman was called for tripping but the hosts were awarded a penalty shot.

Will Cullen converted and, as the Steelers pushed for a way back, they were hit again when Daniel Tedesco made it 3-1 at 56.12.

Mark Cooper added further gloss with an empty-net strike with just 39 seconds remaining.