21st/22nd November Weekend Preview

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Saturday 21st November: Sheffield Steelers (7th) v Excel Hull Stingrays (8th) @ Ice Sheffield, F/O 7pm
Sunday 22nd November: Cardiff Devils (5th) v Excel Hull Stingrays (8th) @ Cardiff Bay Arena, F/O 6pm

Form
Stingrays: L W L L L
Sheffield: L L L W W
Cardiff: W W W L L

Last 3 Meetings
v Sheffield
17/01/09 0-4 L H
22/02/09 2-4 L A
11/10/09 1-4 L H

v Cardiff
13/09/09 5-2 L A
26/09/09 4-1 L A
31/10/09 5-7 L H

Season Series
v Sheffield: 0-1, 0 points, 1 GF, 4 GA
v Cardiff: 1-3, 2 points, 12 GF, 18 GA

Players to Watch
Stingrays: Curtis Huppe (16 GP 5+3 12 PIM) Pressure is building on the Stingrays assistant coach after failing to begin the season in the kind of form that has seen him hit 26, 28, 20 and 38 goals in his four previous spells in the Elite League. Just one assist in five games is not enough for a player the Rays were supposed to rely on offensively, especially since he is likely to be one of the team's top earners. Without Huppe, the Rays continue to rely on Jeff Glowa and Konstantin Kalmikov for much of the team's forward production.

Sheffield: Matt Hubbauer (11 GP 10+3 43 PIM) Hubbauer, recently signed after an extensive spell in the German Bundesliga, once hit 48 goals in 62 games during his junior career, in a year that saw him highly touted ahead of the NHL Draft. Unfortunately, the Canadian suffered a serious injury at the back-end of that campaign and was never quite the same again. That is, until now. After a terrible start to the season for the Steelers, Hubbauer was signed and has gone on to net ten goals in 11 games to give the Sheffield side a very welcome boost in a lowly seventh position.

Cardiff: Max Birbraer (27 GP 7+20 26 PIM) Returning to South Wales alongside Mark Smith, after a year away, Birbraer has continued to show his genuine quality in a Devils side that has begun to show signs of taking the next step. Despite the absence of Smith through injury, the Israeli has netted seven times and added 20 assists in 27 games, and it is thought that there is still more to come.

Between the Pipes
Stingrays: Tommy Sandahl (21 GP, 89.5 sv.%, 4.25 GAA)
Sheffield: Andrew Verner (12 GP, 89.2 sv.%, 3.73 GAA)
Cardiff: Stevie Lyle (21 GP, 89.8 sv.%, 3.15GAA)

Absentees
Stingrays: Pavel Gomenyuk (broken rib)
Sheffield: Kevin Reiter (groin), Rod Sarich (broken thumb), Scott Basiuk (back)
Cardiff: Mark Smith (knee; doubt)

Predictions
Sheffield 4-2 Stingrays
Cardiff 4-5 Stingrays

Davies and Mitchell selected to GB U20's

The Excel Hull Stingrays Craig Mitchell and Matty Davies have been selected to ice for Great Britain Under 20's at the upcoming U20's World Championship Division II B.

Forward Davies, who has so far accumulated three goals and five assists in 21 games, has been a standout player for the Rays in his first season in the EIHL, while blueliner Mitchell, in his second season as a pro, has been one of the team's more solid defencemen, recording three assists in 19 games.

The pair will certainly miss Stingrays away fixtures against Nottingham (13th December) and Cardiff (18th December), while they are also unlikely to feature in the Rays home fixture against Nottingham on the December 19, the day after their final U20 fixture against Hungary.

The tournament, in which Britain will be expected to, at the very least, medal, sees them face China, Spain, Korea, Mexico and hosts Hungary.

It is expected that Sylvain Cloutier will call up players from the English National League's Kingston Jets to fill the void left by their temporary absence.

Elsewhere, former Stingray Stevie Lee, who has this season seen regular ice time with the Nottingham Panthers, recording just one assist in 24 games, has been named captain of the squad.

Match Highlights: Excel Hull Stingrays 0-5 Coventry Blaze

Stingrays shutout

Excel Hull Stingrays 0-5 Coventry Blaze

The Excel Hull Stingrays closed their two game home double header with a five goal loss as the Coventry Blaze shut the Rays out for the first time in the Sylvain Cloutier era.

More soon

Match Highlights: Excel Hull Stingrays 2-5 Nottingham Panthers

Panthers take two points from Humberside

Hull Stingrays 2 - 5 Nottingham Panthers

The Nottingham Panthers emerged as comfortable winners in a 5-2 game at the Hull Arena.

The Stingrays, buoyed by finally possessing a full quota of players, started off in woeful fashion. The away side stunned the Hull Arena by striking twice inside 2 minutes. The first goal was care of Bruce Richardson at 1:38, and the second a clinical finish from Cameron Mann, just 17 seconds later at 1:55.

In response, the Stingrays battled hard, knowing the huge challenge that they faced after such a catastrophic start. The game became a chippy affair, with tensions boiling over at 14:08. Stingrays' player coach Sylvain Cloutier stepped in after a Bruce Richardson hit, and a coming together of both players ensued. Panthers' forward Marc Levers 'face washed' Stingrays' Lee Mitchell, who both dropped the gloves and exchanged punches. Both players received 5 minute penalties for fighting.

For the rest of the period, the Stingrays managed to hold firm against a clearly talented Nottingham side. The away side outshot the Stingrays 11 to 7 in the first period.

Unfortunately for the home side, the second period was to begin in similar fashion to the second period. Bruce Richardson fired his second goal past Sandahl, after excellent work from the league's top points scorer, Jade Galbraith.

The Panthers allowed the Stingrays back into the game, conceding a string of minor penalties. The home side took advantage of their opportunities, and had pulled back 2 goals after 37 minutes. Lee Mitchell scored both (at 31:06 and 36:33), finishing off well-worked powerplay moves. This clearly lifted the spirits of the home side, with coach Cloutier geeing up the crowd.

In the third period, the Panthers appeared to tighten up their defensive game, and reduced the number of goalscoring chances like the Stingrays enjoyed in the second period. The final nail in the Stingrays' coffin was hammered in at 49.39, when Panthers defenceman Dominic D'amour struck a powerful slapshot, leaving Stingrays' keeper Sandahl with no chance. To further condemn the home side, Adam Knight was penalised for attempted spearing, receiving 2+2+10. This effectively killed off any hopes of a Stingrays comeback, and Panthers' forward Sean Mcaslan rounded off the evening's scoring on the powerplay, finishing high on Sandahl from an acute angle at 51:03.

Stingrays Stats
Stats: L Mitchell 2+0, Halkidis, Silverthorn, Knight, Cloutier 0+1
Sandahl: 34 shots, 5 goals conceded
PIM: 27-19
SOG: 34-27

Good
An excellent performance from Lee Mitchell, who appears to be fully fit and hungry for goals. An improved game from Cloutier, who made some nice touches and showed he really cares about his team by standing up for them. An improved powerplay performance, with 2 goals from 7 powerplay opportunities.

Bad
A shocking start to the first and second periods, leaving the team with an uphill struggle. Niggling defensive errors still remain prevalent.

F Block Blog MOM
Stingrays: Lee Mitchell (2+0) There could be no other choice for man of the match. Worked immensely hard as always, and proved dangerous on the powerplay with 2 quick-fire goals to give the Stingrays hope. The Scottish forward also showed he was prepared to stand up for himself, fighting Panthers' Marc Levers in the first period.

Panthers: Dominic D'amour (1+1) Whilst fellow Canadian Bruce Richardson may receive the plaudits for his 2 goals, F Block Blog decided that D'amour was also deserving of credit. A solid defensive performance was rounded off with a rocket of a slapshot in the 3rd period to kill off the game. His size, skill and nasty streak all proved to be valuable attributes in this game.

Stingrays Verdict: 6/10
Had the Stingrays got out of the blocks quicker in this game, it could have been so very different. The team showed moments of promise, but were ultimately outplayed.

Solid performances of note came from Lee Mitchell, Sylvain Cloutier, George Halkidis and Stephen Burns. The overall performance of the team was reasonable, and it was apparent that effort was there from all players.

Nottingham's performance reflected their superiority over the Stingrays in the league standings, and deserved the win. If the Stingrays are to reach the mid-table promised land, they will have to start picking up points at home, even from top teams such as the Panthers.

Cloutier's Comments

“It was a bad start but we battled back into the game and if Silver’s shot had gone in it could have been a different game. I am very disappointed. I thought we played a decent game.

“They have an all-star line-up and they have put a good team together and you have to give them credit. But we are just as good as they are when we play five-on-five and disciplined hockey and not make those little mistakes. Tomorrow [against Coventry Blaze] is a big game for us, we need to rebound or it’s going to be a long week.”

Stingray News

Stingrays shine as GB U20 beat Scims

Excel Hull Stingray pair Craig Mitchell and Matty Davies were selected and appeared for the Great Britain Under 20's last night against EPL side Sheffield Scimitars.

Davies, who has been a bright spot in the Stingrays season so far, recording three goals and eight points in 19 games, recorded the game winning penalty shot as the U20's beat Sheffield 4-3, while Craig Mitchell played a big part on the blueline.

Rays head towards full strength...no this is not a test

The Excel Hull Stingrays may, just may, ice this weekend with theoretically, a full strength squad, following the news that forward Jason Silverthorn and defenceman James Hutchinson will return to training this week and will most likely make a return to full action during this weekends home double header against table toppers Nottingham and Coventry.

Their return would leave the team with three lines of both defence and forwards, as well as a full compliment of imports for the first time since the opening weekend of the season and even then they were without Lee Mitchell

The Rays have been plagued by injuries ever since they joined the Elite League, and despite a change in coaching, this season has been no different, with no less than seven of the Stingrays squad being hit with by the injury curse.

Mitchell was the first to be struck down, missing the opening ten weeks of the season after picking up a knee injury during summer preparations, however, the Brit finally reappeared last weekend; this weekend will see just Pavel Gomenyuk (fractured rib) sitting on the sidelines.

The injury list has been long and varied for Sylvain Cloutier's side. A concussion, a fractured rib, a broken arm, a broken hand, two broken cheekbones, a serious knee injury, sinusitis and a number of other minor injuries have all been sustained this term, however, coach, squad and fanbase will be hoping the worst is now over.

Once Ukrainian Gomenyuk returns the team will be back up to 11 imports with just ten allowed to ice during each EIHL game. Cloutier will then be left with the tough, but welcome, choice of ditching one import should the team remain at full strength. Their performances over the next few weeks could be key as to who goes, with defencemen under particular scrutiny given the Rays poor defensive record and the surplus which Gomenyuk's return will find them in.

New boys make an impact offensively

Statistically, new signings James Sanford, George Halkidis and, to a lesser extent due to his injury, Jason Silverthorn have made a positive impact on what was a frail Stingrys side that relied far too heavily on a small number of players.

Sanford, while initially struggling to get to grips with the the style of play in the league, has lived up to his name as a powerplay quarterback, notching an impressive eight assists in ten games, while alongside him, George Halkidis has brought an experienced, calm and collected mentality to the team's blueline, adding a similarly impressive two goals and two assists from six games as a Stingray.

Up front, Silverthorn bagged a goal and assist on debut against Coventry before a puck released from Sanford's stick inadvertently broke his jaw in the same game. Nevertheless, with Silverthorn once again icing this weekend, the positive feelings, headed by the new blood, look to be making a welcome return to the Hull Arena.

Burns and Knight chip in

After coming under some criticism during the opening quarter of the season, defenceman Stephen Burns and Adam Knight have hit a purple patch of form during the last two weeks. While goals and points are not the only important factor, the pair have been both hitting the twine and putting in good performances over the last two weeks.

Knight, banned for five games on the opening weekend of the season, lost that offensive spark which impressed fans and coach alike in the Rays pre-season games, but recent weeks have seen the tough Canadian return to form, scoring in the late loss to Newcastle before adding a goal and an assist in the next game against Edinburgh. His importance to the team was never in doubt, and now, thanks to his recent form, neither are his abilities on the ice.

Meanwhile, Burns, who is admittedly the Rays only real stay-at-home import defenceman, netted twice in the loss to Coventry, taking his season total to three goals and two assists in 19 games, and has turned around a period of form that had some questioning his abilities in front of Tommy Sandahl.

Reynolds lands in Dijon

Last week it was revealed that former Stingrays forward Matt Reynolds had signed in France with Ducs De Dijon in the Ligue Magnus, the French top flight.

28 year old Reynolds enjoyed a successful first season in Britain last term, scoring 22 goals and 55 points in 51 games, however, he struggled to re-find that form in his second year in the country, this time under Sylvain Cloutier, recording just five points and one goal in 11 games.

Dijon are currently sitting top of the Ligue Magnus table, one point ahead of Morzine-Avoriaz, with four wins from five games.

Blaze Burns Stingrays

Coventry Blaze 5-2 Excel Hull Stingrays

A day after ending an eight game losing streak, the Excel Hull Stingrays were put on another skid by the title contending Coventry Blaze, as Sylvain Cloutier's former side ran out comfortable 5-2 winners over his current side at the Coventry Skydome.

Defenceman Stephen Burns scored his second and third goals of the season for the Stingrays but that was not enough to stop a rampant Coventry side run away with the game with three third period goals.

A physical second period saw the Stingrays trail by two goals to one, that physicality would later escalate in the third period with the Rays Adam Knight and James Sanford both dropping the gloves against Coventry's Derek Campbell and Danny Stewart respectively.

Two 42nd minute goals from Adam Calder and Greg Owen, giving the Blaze a 4-1 lead, would prove fatal for the Stingrays, ending the game as a contest. There was still time for Burns to register his second of the night, however, the game was rounded off by a Campbell goal for the Blaze, sealing the score at 5-2.

Match highlights:


SOG:
PIM: 22-29

Stingrays get back to winning ways; move off bottom spot

Excel Hull Stingrays 4-3 Edinburgh Capitals

The Excel Hull Stingrays tonight eked out their first win in nine games and just their second in 16 games as they defeated the Edinburgh Capitals at the Hull Arena by four goals to three.

Goals from Lee Esders, Adam Knight, who struck for the second time in two games, and a double from Konstantin Kalmikov, including the winner with less than five minutes remaining, gave the Stingrays a slim one-goal victory over the sixth placed Capitals.

Lee Mitchell made a successful return to action, bagging an assist on Esders second minute goal, in a game which he iced with defenceman brother Craig for the first time in his professional career.

Notable statistical performances in this game came from Kalmikov, who obviously notched two more goals to his tally, George Halkidis, who claimed two assists, Lee Mitchell and Adam Knight, who has hit back at a number of criticisms with a series of impressive performances, recording a goal and an assist tonight.

The win sees the Stingrays move off the bottom spot for the first time in over a month after the news that last seasons double winners, the Sheffield Steelers, were being soundly beaten 6-2 by their fierce rivals in Nottingham.

More important than moving off bottom spot is that Sylvain Cloutier's side grabbed the two points on offer and that his side has finally begun to show signs of evolving as they creep to full capacity, after two months of under performing while understrength.

Match Highlights:



SOG: 41-38
PIM: 12-8

7th/8th November Weekend Preview

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Saturday 7th November: Excel Hull Stingrays (8th) v Edinburgh Capitals (6th) @ Hull Arena, F/O 5.30pm Sunday 8th November: Coventry Blaze (4th) v Excel Hull Stingrays (8th) @ Coventry Skydome Arena, F/O 6pm

Form
Stingrays: L L L L L
Edinburgh: W W L L W
Coventry: L W L W L

Last 3 Meetings
v Edinburgh
19/09/09 2-9 L H
03/10/09 4-1 W H
25/10/09 3-2 L A

v Coventry
20/09/09 4-2 L A
17/10/09 5-4 L A
24/10/09 5-3 L A
Season Series
v Coventry: 0-3, 0 points, 9 GF, 14 GA
v Edinburgh: 1-2, 2 points, 8 GF, 13 GA

Players to Watch
Stingrays: Lee Mitchell (First Appearance) The British forward, ruled out of the first two months of the season thanks to a knee injury, will make his long awaited return to action this weekend. After pushing himself to the brink of the Great Britain squad at the beginning of last season, he went on to record 30 points in 53 games. This weekend he will make his first appearance of the season alongside his younger brother Craig, who has so far notched up two assists in 15 games from the Stingrays blueline.

Edinburgh: Jeff Hutchins (6 GP 3+5 17 PIM) Released by Sheffield after a start that saw the South Yorkshire outfit plummet to second bottom, Hutchins was picked up to return to Scotland with the Capitals. Naturally, the Canadian made his debut against his former side and notched up two assists, he went on to score two goals against them three days later. His arrival has coincided with the Capitals rise in form as he has scored eight points in six games which the Scottish side have claimed six point.

Coventry: Jonathan Weaver (17 GP 4+14 10 PIM) The GB defenceman was recently handed a brand new three year contract with the Blaze as he continues to be the lynch pin of the Blaze blueline. He began the season in brilliant offensive form, with 17 points in ten games, however in the last seven games he has no points, and while the majority of the Blaze squad is contributing, he will once again have to pick it up if they are to challenge for the title.

Between the Pipes
Stingrays: Tommy Sandahl (17 GP, 89.9 sv%, 4.19 GAA) After a positive start to the season the Swede's form has recently come under fire from coach Sylvain Cloutier after Sandahl allowed six goals from 32 Cardiff shots last weekend. The Stingrays keeper has allowed a league high 67 goals, but taking into account the league high 665 shots a night he has faced and the Rays leaky defence, his performances have, by no means, been the most concerning.

Edinburgh: Cody Rudkowski (14 GP, 90.2 sv%, 3.53 GAA) Rudkowski's performances between the Capitals pipes have been increasingly impressive in recent weeks as Edinburgh's fortunes have improved three fold. A huge part of those improved fortunes has been the solid play of Rudkowski who, a night after allowing just four goals from 60 shots, backstopped the Caps to a win over the Nottingham Panthers

Coventry: Peter Hirsch (16 GP, 92.1 sv%, 2.67 GAA) Hirsch sits second in the league behind Stephen Murphy in both save percentage and goals against average. The Danish international has been a marked improvement over J F Perras from last season and has let in just two goals in five consecutive games to give the Blaze a chance to win every night.

Absentees
Stingrays: James Hutchinson (broken arm), Pavel Gomenyuk (broken rib), Jason Silverthorn (doubt; broken jaw)
Edinburgh: Doug Christiansen (broken patella), Kyle Horne (doubt; concussion), Martin Cingel (lower body)
Coventry: Full Strength

Predictions
Stingrays 3-4 Edinburgh
Coventry 4-2 Stingrays