Giants Miss Out As Sheffield Steel The Points With 4-2 Win

Dean Woolley Photography: Carsen Chubak, on his Giants debut, makes a save.

The Stena Line Belfast Giants were narrowly beaten in Sheffield on Saturday in an Elite league and Erhardt Conference clash, losing out 4-2.

However the scoreline was harsh on the Belfast side with Sheffield leading 2-0 following he first period, only to see their visitors battle back with the score 3-2 until 59:49 when the hosts sealed the win with an empty net goal.

Once again, the Giants were missing bodies – Mike Kompon, Stephen Murphy and Mark McCutcheon all injured, however Darryl Lloyd returned from suspension and Carsen Chubak made his Giants debut in net, replacing the injured Murphy.

The first period in Sheffield was not one to remember for the Giants, conceding within the first 95 seconds of face-off and also with 2:23 remaining.

The opening goal of the game came thanks to a turnover in the Giants zone after good work from Colton Fretter, and fed the puck to Mathieu Roy who snapped his shot past Chubak to give the Steelers a 1-0 lead.

After a bad start, the visitors played their way back into the game and went close through Kevin Phillips and Ray Sawada, with the latter’s shot ringing off the crossbar as Sheffield managed to hold onto their lead.

However, against the run of play, the hosts doubled their lead at 17:37 – this time it was Michael Forney who found the net after a scramble in the crease to leave the Giants trailing by two goals at the end of the opening 20 minutes.

The second period was a very different matter as the Giants set about eating into Sheffield’s lead and came flying out of the blocks.

With only 1:40 on the clock, Craig Peacock, Evan Cheverie and Kevin Saurette teamed up on the Steelers net and Peacock fired home to give the Giants a lifeline. Frank Doyle, Steelers goaltender, was called into action as the Giants went in search of a game tying goal – however, against the run of play, Sheffield had a two goal lead once more with Steelers new signing, Ben O’Connor finding the net from close range at 23:08.

Belfast dominated the remainder of the period, outshooting Sheffield for a second straight period, and at 35:30 the pressure paid off – Ray Sawada, assisted by Calvin Elfring and Kevin Westgarth, pulled his side to within one goal of their hosts on the powerplay with his ninth of the season and his 8th powerplay goal.

Despite outshooting the Steelers 34-29, the Giants could not find a way past Frank Doyle in net for the Steelers in the final period. With Carsen Chubak pulled for an extra outskater, the Sheffield Steelers cleared their zone and the puck found it’s way to Tyler Mosienko, who slotted home from close range to seal the win for the home side at 59:49.

Final Score:
Sheffield Steelers 4-2 Stena Line Belfast Giants

Steve Thornton, Head of Hockey Operations:
“We lost 4-2 – I thought we battled well throughout the game, however battling isn’t good enough – we need to start winning games. This league tough and the teams at the top are close together and we need to start finding a way to win. I thought Carsen Chubak played well, especially considering the circumstances with him having only one practice under his belt. Sunday against Nottingham is a big game for us – winning our home games is important.

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Dean Woolley Photography: Ray Sawada celebrates his goal with Kevin Westgarth