SLAVA KOULIKOV got exactly what he expected from last weekend’s pre-season double-header against Solway - and expects the pace to pick-up when his Sheffield Steeldogs team faces off against Leeds Knights in back-to-back games over the next 48 hours.

With only limited time to work with his full roster going into their trip to Scotland – the game in Dumfries was abandoned 12 minutes early due to ice conditions with Solway 5-2 ahead – the Steeldogs’ head coach will have been pleased to have more time this week to work on his team’s systems and combinations.

The Steeldogs responded positively to the ‘defeat’ in Dumfries by producing a 6-1 win at Ice Sheffield on Sunday – goals coming from Nathan Ripley, Jonathan Kirk, Walker Sommer (2), Dante Solituro and Michael Pelech.

Koulikov, whose team beat Leeds in last season’s National Cup Final over two legs before losing out to them in the play-off semi-final in April, expects a tough workout over 120 minutes from Ryan Aldridge’s team.

“Saturday was a great test for us because Solway were already week three in, they had four games, so we were under the cosh quite a bit,” Koulikov told Steeldogs’ website. “But that is exactly what I wanted, to see how we're going to play.

“And then Sunday was a great response, it was good to win in front of the home fans.

“It's totally understandable for this time of year. There's a lot of tactical stuff to work on, but the commitment was there, that's the most important thing.

“Leeds will bring a lot of energy, as always. They play with high pressure, relentless, and obviously have a really good squad, a lot of depth there and a lot of quality, so it will be a different game.”

BRING IT ON: Sheffield Steeldogs' boss Slava Koulikov looking forward to a double-header pre-season weekend against NIHL National rivals Leeds Knights. Picture: Steeldogs Media.

placeholder image — BRING IT ON: Sheffield Steeldogs' boss Slava Koulikov looking forward to a double-header pre-season weekend against NIHL National rivals Leeds Knights. Picture: Steeldogs Media.

The Steeldogs will use Sunday’s game against the Knights (4pm) to honour defenceman Tim Smith, who retired at the end of last season after 13 seasons with the organisation. His #42 shirt will be retired to the Ice Sheffield rafters.

While Sheffield and Leeds go toe-to-toe across the weekend, Hull Seahawks will compete their pre-season schedule with a workout against North One feeder team, Hull Jets.

The game faces off at Hull Ice Arena on Saturday at 5.30pm.