A Giant leap?
In a weekend dominated by Super Bowl talk, it could have been easy to forget that important battles on home soil (ice) were also being fought, in the run up to our play-offs – and more importantly, the final fight for the league title. But as the New York Giants triumphed in the finale of the NFL season, those of us who couldn’t give a teeny tiny tinkle about what the Americans call ‘football’ watched another team of Giants move one step closer to an elusive treble, and rubbed our hands together in anticipation of what is shaping up to be a thrilling final third of an already intriguing Elite League season.
To say the Belfast side have made a statement this weekend would be a fair assessment. One could hyperbolise further and perhaps assert that they’ve staked their claim on all three trophies, that they’ve got the league title in the bag, or that the Steelers have choked, but at this stage I feel that would be to overstate the situation. They’ve laid down a marker. It’s now up to their rivals to respond.
They went into the weekend bolstered, having announced in the dying seconds of the transfer window the re-signing of sizeable American enforcer Mike Hoffman. Whilst subject to mixed reviews from fans last season, it’s hard to argue that Hoffman’s presence is massive for the Giants in more ways than one, and his arrival was largely met with positivity. On Saturday Belfast took on a Cardiff team reeling from the news of Brad Voth’s retirement and still missing key players in all areas, and took a decisive victory over the plucky but depleted Welsh team to pick up two league points and advance to the Challenge Cup final where they will face the Nottingham Panthers.
On Sunday Belfast took on Sheffield at the Motorpoint Arena in a repeat of the televised fixture from back in December, when the Steelers won in overtime amidst much controversy over hand passes and offside decisions. Oh, and Aaron Clarke trying to decapitate a linesman. Allegedly. This time around the Giants wreaked their revenge, Mike Hoffman making his mark, scoring the fourth goal in a 4-2 win and picking up the man of the match award. Ante well and truly upped.
So what of the contenders for this seasons’ trophies? Nottingham are a team who are always capable of winning a big game – however they don’t seem to be able to sustain their level throughout a season. No-one would bet against them in an individual match-up, particularly at play-offs when they play on home ice, but they have no staying power. When they have an off day, they really have an off day, and playing away from home they are vulnerable and drop more points than they should against teams they should be beating. And barring a total collapse from one or both of their two main rivals, it looks as though they have missed their chance again this season, in terms of the league title at least – and let’s face it, that’s the one they really want.
And what about the Steelers? Murmurings from fans this morning seem to suggest they are capitulating, ready to submit the title to the Giants already. Methinks the Steelers doth protest too much. Let’s not forget, they still have a daunting six game advantage over the current league leaders – convert that into points and they would be sitting atop the League by a point. Okay, winning those six games is a big ask. And the mere fact of the packed schedule itself will undoubtedly take its toll. But the Steelers have shown their quality, grinding out a number of tough wins in recent weeks – is this just a blip on the monitor for them? Or does it really spell the end of their title hopes?
And so to the pretenders to Sheffield’s throne. The Giants have been ahead of the competition all season long. Despite injuries to a number of key players, they have shown strength and tenacity and whenever they looked as though the wheels might fall off, they’ve dug in their heels and bounced back. It hasn’t always been pretty, or convincing – but isn’t that the mark of a championship-winning side?
So was it just another weekend in the Elite League? Or have the Giants really got one hand on the trophy already? Will I ever stop asking questions and actually answer one? Okay, I will. I personally think it’s too early to write off the Steelers. I think the Panthers will win at least one competition. I’ll leap from my rather precarious position on the fence and hazard a guess: I think the honours will be split three ways, with Belfast winning arguably the least coveted of the three prizes in the Challenge Cup. Is this the year for them? I’m not convinced. The Steelers have a habit of pulling it out of the bag under pressure and they have the quality in their side to get the job done.
The consequences of not winning will be weighing heavy on coach Doug Christiansen’s mind following his lack of success last season, and it seems unlikely the people in the power will be as patient with him as those in Nottingham are with Corey Neilson’s lack of league success. They have put the funds behind him to make a meaningful assault on the league title and if he comes away empty-handed, a potential Challenge Cup or play-off win may not be enough to prevent them from looking elsewhere for inspiration come next season. I predicted 1st place for them in my pre-season preview, and I for one hope they do it. I’m sure they CAN do it, but whether they have the spirit and the presence of mind to ACTUALLY do it… I don’t know.
All in all, signs point towards the double-header between the Giants and the Steelers in Northern Ireland on St Patricks’ Day weekend becoming the crux of this gripping tale – it promises to be a weekend of epic proportions, play-off hockey style, with both nights practically a game seven for the teams involved, potentially an eight point weekend. There will be twists and turns in the road along the way, that much is certain, but these two sides are so evenly matched, there’s no doubt in my mind that that double-header will be monumental. And I’m going to be there. I can’t bloody wait.
