If you’re going to get one, get a Big one: An Elite League title decider weekend preview

Large. Of considerable size. Substantial. Immense. Weekends in British ice hockey do not come much bigger than this one. Weekends in general don’t come much bigger. When this weekend was plucked from the calendar and booked back before Christmas, we had no notion that it would come down to this: two nights, two games, and in them two teams with the final score to settle: who will lift the Elite League trophy this year? Who will be champions, and who will finish second best, runners up.

If it wasn’t big enough, this also happens to be St Patricks’ Day weekend; Belfast will be jumping with visitors as well as being teeming with its own celebrating residents; in addition to the mouth-watering hockey-shaped treats on offer, they will visit for the beer, the rugby (it just so happens to be the Six Nations deciding weekend) and of course the legendary craic. And if all that wasn’t enough, legendary sports bar Rockies is back much to the delight of the visiting hockey fans. Oh, and the games are being broadcast live on BBC Radio. Mainstream coverage, anyone? Don’t mind if we do!

Sheffield Steelers fans are making the journey in their droves, along with a fair few neutrals, myself included. But it’s time to lay my cards on the table. Because when one is passionate about sport, it’s almost impossible to be truly neutral. I want the Giants to win the league, and I have from the outset. But both teams have provided us with some great entertainment this season and I have to say, I really like this year’s Steelers. They are creative, rugged and have a habit of pulling out wins when they’re under the cosh. Which they have had to do on a number of occasions this season, and it’s what has seen them through to where they are today, challenging for the top spot once again.

However they’ve fallen short on occasion too, dropping key points against arch-rivals the Panthers and more recently their opponents for the title, the Giants. Their intercontinental cup jaunt to Denmark earlier in the season left them trailing games and points and they’ve been playing catch-up ever since, which has to take its toll psychologically, notwithstanding the frenetic schedule that has seen them packing in the games late in the season. There’s no doubt they must be tired, physically and mentally. Do they have enough left in the tank? Two games in a hostile Odyssey Arena will need to yield a full four points if they are to have any hope of staying in the race, and that is one hell of an ask, against a Giants side who have rarely been found wanting this season.

The Giants have delivered in all areas, all season – in Stephen Murphy they have a strong, confident netminder, in front of him a stingy defence composed of some of the brightest sparks in the league this season in Dignard, Mason and Kuiper, and at the front they’ve had the firepower to win games, in no small part due to exceptional Brits Rob Dowd and Craig Peacock. ‘It’s theirs to lose’ is the mantra that’s been repeated by pundits, journalists and fans alike for the past few weeks, and it’s true. It would be fair to say that this weekend is more of a title confirmation than a title decider, as all Belfast need to do to etch their name into that trophy is to win one of the two games in front of what is likely be a capacity home crowd, and as long as they don’t go to pieces, they should be able to do that.

Key battles will be fought all over the ice, but Belfast’s squeaky clean defence face one of their stiffer challenges up against probably the league’s top forward, Jeff Legue, who is capable of scoring clutch goals in exactly these sorts of situations, along with a collection of other bright attacking talent. The hits should be hard thanks in no small part to the return of Belfast’s Darryl Lloyd, but these teams respect one another and I predict a cagey start, hopefully developing into full-on, balls out, play-off style hockey. The importance of the netminders having strong performances has already been discussed and is undeniable. Head to head, the teams have played four times this season and have shared honours even. They really couldn’t be any more closely matched.

So what will it come to on the day? What will decide the fate of the League title for the 2011/12 season? Could it be the influence of a coach, Doug Christiansen looking on from the bench, or Finnerty out on the ice, dogged and determined as ever? Perhaps it will come down to one piece of luck, one breakaway chance, one sneaky goal, the tightest of margins. Perhaps even a nerve-shredding penalty shoot-out. Or maybe, just maybe, one team will step up to the challenge and exert themselves over the other, stamping their authority on the game and leaving it all on the ice to prove they have what it takes to be league champions. Whatever happens, it’s going to be compelling. And I’ll bring you every twist and turn right here over the weekend – if I’m able to get past jubilant Irish folk to my laptop, that is. I have only three words left to conclude my preview, and these are they: Bring. It. On.