Leeds Knights hoping home ice advantage can produce success against Swindon Wildcats and Sheffield Steeldogs

Essentially sharing the same ownership group, the Wildcats and Leeds Knights have served up a number of barnstormers in the two years that they have been slugging it out against one another in NIHL National.

So far, you would have to say that it is the new kids on the block that have the edge in terms of success – at least when considering the Knights’ league and play-off winning exploits from 2022-23.

But Knights’ head coach Ryan Aldridge believes former club the Wildcats present one of the biggest threats to their crown this time around, given the strength of the roster put together by opposite number Aaron Nell.

That roster has found it tough to get going so far, however, given their Link Centre rink was flooded at the start of the season due to adverse weather conditions.

It has forced them to find other venues to both practice and play ‘home games’ – no easy task.

As a result, the Wildcats have so far played just the four games, three of them on the road, with their only ‘home’ game being staged at Milton Keynes where they were beaten 6-2 by the Lightning.

“We’re coming up against a team who will be frustrated and have not had a perfect start regarding their preparations, given what they are going through,” said Aldridge, whose team go into Saturday’s fixture on a high given their 9-1 thumping of Milton Keynes in Leeds last Sunday.

“But when I look down their line-up on the board in my office, you can see that they are a very deep, very stacked hockey team.

“They are similar to Milton Keynes, definitely on a par and when it comes to British players, I actually think Swindon have got a much better core than anyone for this level and we have to be on our toes this weekend.”

Aldridge expects another fierce battle against the club he coached between 2009-2015. The Wildcats have just the one win from their stilted season so far.

Last year saw Leeds edge the head-to-head regular season series by three wins to two.

"We know that Swindon always come in here and play hard,” added Aldridge, on a fixture that was originally scheduled to be played in Swindon. “It’s funny, even though we’re part of the same ownership group, these are the toughest and roughest games that we have throughout the year.

"It’s a bit strange but we like that because it shows the competitive side is definitely there, but we’re all friends afterwards again.”

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The Wildcats clash is just the first of two fixtures to be played on home ice this weekend, the second being against another team in Sheffield that has also suffered in terms of preparations, more so during the pre-season.

The Steeldogs saw their own plans for 2023-24 put on ice while a protracted wrangle over new ownership took place during the summer, with Sheffield Steelers’ owner Tony Smith eventually being given the green light to take over by the ten other NIHL National team owners.

It meant new player-coach Jason Hewitt was denied valuable recruiting time, a situation that saw him start the season with just two of the three permitted imports, a situation which he said last week is unlikely to change.

But given they have added former Steelers’ and Great Britain captain Jonathan Phillips, to the roster, there has still been a significant upgrade.

Hewitt’s options have been boosted further this week with former Leeds Knights’ forward Tate Shudra joining on a full-time basis on Friday, ending a two-way agreement with NIHL North’s Blackburn Hawks.

That follows the signing of GB Under-20 defenceman Sam Cooper, who is on a two-way deal with neighbouring Sheffield Steelers.

The Steeldogs – who host Telford Tigers on Saturday night – have had a mixed start to the campaign and were the first team to be beaten by Bristol Pitbulls when losing 5-2 on the road last Saturday.

But Aldridge knows that with the first Yorkshire derby bragging rights on the table, Sunday will be another tough night.

“They are never an easy team to play against,” said Aldridge, whose team head into the weekend top of the standings. “They’ve got good goaltending, a very good, experienced D-core and I’m sure they’ll be well-coached by Hewy this year.

“Jonno (Phillips) is obviously a massive addition for them. He’s a born leader and he’ll is probably exactly what is needed on that team, just for the experience and leadership side of it.”