EPL: Hull Pirates end season with defeats | Steeldogs take good look at play-off rivals Peterborough

Dominic Osman’s team followed up a 7-4 defeat on the road at Swindon Wildcats with a 4-2 defeat at home to Milton Keynes Lightning.

There was disappointment on the final weekend of the regular season for Sheffield Steeldogs suffering a 3-2 defeat at Roses rivals Manchester Phoenix before going down by the same scoreline to league runners-up Peterborough Phantoms, the team they have been drawn against in the first round of the play-offs.

The game was up for Hull at Swindon before the end of the first period, as they never recovered from going 5-0 down inside 18 minutes, although Nathan Salem got the visitors on the board with four seconds of the period remaining.

The Pirates gave themselves a brief glimmer of hope when Salem’s second - on the powerplay at 26.07 - was followed by a James Chilcott strike on the man advantage less than two minutes later.

But the Wildcats regained a three-goal lead in the 35th minute through Floyd Beaupre Taylor and although Salem completed his hat trick at 42.40, it was as close as the Pirates got, with Swindon sealing a 7-4 triumph through Jonas Hoog in the 51st minute.

In a much closer game at home to Milton Keynes, Osman’s team found themselves 2-0 down after two periods before halving the deficit early in the third through Pasi Salonen.

Leigh Jamieson restored the visitors’ two-goal lead at 45.40, only for Hull to hit back again through Osman in the 55th minute. But no comeback was forthcoming after Jamieson sealed the points with his second with just 70 seconds remaining.

Craig Elliott and Andrew Hirst struck first-period goals for Sheffield Steeldogs at Manchester, but the home side were level before the period’s end thanks to two goals in just 33 seconds from Martin Baranek and Michal Satek.

Another 40 minutes of hockey failed to produce any more goals with overtime only being 71 seconds old when Ben Wood struck the winning goal for the hosts.

On Sunday in Peterborough, Greg Wood’s team found themselves 3-0 down before they launched a third period fightback.

Ashley Calvert’s powerplay strike at 45.09 reduced the deficit before it became a one-goal game at 54.22 thanks to Lubomir Korhon.

But, try as they might, Sheffield couldn’t find the leveller they needed, although both sides will have familiarised themselves with each other ahead of this weekend’s play-off quarter-final.