Sheffield Steelers and Leeds Knights win, Hull Seahawks edged out - Saturday night hockey review

Ahead of Sunday night’s trip to Guildford Flames, the 6-4 victory was enough to keep the Steelers 14 points clear at the top of the Elite League standings with 17 games remaining.

There was little to choose between the two teams after 40 minutes, the Steelers going into the second intermission 3-2 ahead thanks to first period strikes from Josh Nicholls and Daniel Ciampini and a 29th-minute strike from Kevin Tansey, with Westin Michaud and Logan Neilson replying for the visitors.

It looked as if the hosts were home and dry after Mikko Juusola doubled the lead at 41.39 and Nicholls’ second of the night made it 5-2 with just over 10 minutes remaining.

But the Panthers pulled it back to within one with two goals in 80 seconds, the first from Hugo Roy before Michaud fired in his second on the power play at 53.49.

But, as he has done all season, captain Robert Dowd settled any nerves there may have been on the home bench, when he created another two-goal cushion with his 56th-minute strike, enough to see the Steelers home.

“I felt the third period was our best spell of the game by far,” said Fox. “It maybe wasn’t our best overall tonight but we did enough to win the game and still scored six goals.”

In NIHL National, leaders Leeds Knights stayed ahead of the chasing pack with a comfortable 7-2 win at home to Peterborough Phantoms on Saturday.

Jake Witkowski marked his return from a six-game suspension with two goals and an assist.

Mac Howlett opened the scoring at 8.53 before Jordan Buesa (12.23) and defenceman Lewis Baldwin (13.43) made it 3-0 before the first intermission.

Witkowski’s first, just 13 seconds in, was the only goal of the second period against a dogged Phantoms, before his second made it 6-0 at 41.25, captain Kieran Brown having already increased the home side’s advantage 40 seconds earlier.

Peterborough hit back with strikes from Leo Markey and Luke Ferrara before James Archer rounded off the scoring for the hosts with just 66 seconds remaining.

Hull Seahawks saw their hopes of catching third-placed Swindon Wildcats in the standings dented when their Wiltshire rivals came from behind to beat Matty Davies’s side 2-1.

After a goalless first 20 minutes, Seahawks’ captain Sam Towner broke the deadlock just 27 seconds into the second period.

But it was the minute either side of the second intermission that proved decisive, Swindon levelling with just 10 seconds of the middle period remaining through Glenn Billing before forging ahead through an Edgars Bebris strike just 38 seconds into the third, a goal which proved enough to secure both points for the Wildcats and move them seven points clear of Hull.