WHEN Sheffield Steelers last won the Elite League regular season title, they lost a total of nine games.

Eight of those losses came in regulation, but it mattered little as the Steelers bulldozed their rivals aside to win by 14 points, part of their grand slam season of 2023-24.

According to netminder Matt Greenfield - a key part of that treble-winning roster under head coach Aaron Fox - the Steelers need to be aiming for a similar number of losses if they are to regain the most coveted crown in UK ice hockey.

One of the team’s main targets of making it through to the semi-final stages of the Challenge Cup has been ticked off, leaving them free to concentrate on the main bread and butter of the league until the New Year.

This weekend sees them take on Manchester Storm in back-to-back games, with the Steelers looking to maintain their promising start to the 2026-27 league campaign.

They have lost four games already, from the eight played but, crucially, three of those defeats have been in either overtime or, as was the case last Sunday at Coventry Blaze, after a shootout.

Florida-born Greenfield - between the pipes for both games with back-up netminder Lucas Brine away on international duty with Great Britain at the European Cup of Nations in Poland - is looking forward to being able to only concentrate on the one target for the next couple of months, having eventually finished top of Group A in the Challenge Cup, guaranteeing home ice advantage for the second leg of their semi-final.

Due to a needlessly over-complicated qualification criteria for the last four of the Challenge Cup, it may be some time before the Steelers discover their semi-final opponents. So for now, Greenfield is concentrating on putting his team in pole position for the biggest prize on offer this season.

NO WAY THROUGH: Sheffield Steelers' netminder Matt Greenfield, thwarts a Coventry threat on goal earlier this season. Picture: Cerys Heslop/Steelers Media.

placeholder image — NO WAY THROUGH: Sheffield Steelers' netminder Matt Greenfield, thwarts a Coventry threat on goal earlier this season. Picture: Cerys Heslop/Steelers Media.

“That's why it's nice not to think about the Challenge Cup and concentrate on these two league games with Manchester,” said the 31-year-old goalie, now in his fifth season at the Utilita Arena.

"The message is a clear one - over the whole season, you probably can only afford to lose nine to 11 games if you want to be champions - and we want to be champions.

"For most hockey players, it's the playoffs that are the big trophy each season, certainly back home in North America.

"You play all year to reach the play-offs and then it's almost like the season starts for real again.

"Over here, I quickly found out that the league points are what count the most. Maybe it's a football mentality thing, but it's a change of mindset."

The Steelers face Manchester first up at their Storm at their new AO Arena home on Friday before the two sides meet again in Sheffield 24 hours late.

The two teams clashed twice in the Cup group phase, with the Steelers prevailing on both occasions, their final group game win of 5-2 last Wednesday helping secure top spot overall, while extinguishing Storm’s own hopes of progression.

“Both games were very close,” added Greenfield. “They like to come hard at you, play the body and mix things up. They have a lot of talent, but so do we and I think in recent weeks we've started to find our game and our form.

"Looking out at the team from between the pipes, I can see that we have the talent and the mentality. Concentration is key. If we can play a 60-minute game, then I'm confident we can take all of the points."