Sheffield Steelers expect Brien Diffley to enhance their chances of lifting Elite League crown

The 28-year-old will arrive in South Yorkshire at the end of August having spent last season under the leadership of a man Steelers’ fans know very well in the shape of former head coach, Paul Thompson – the man who last brought the regular season title to Sheffield in 2016.

The former GB coach had Diffley under his wing at Odense Bulldogs in the Danish top-flight Metal Ligaen last season and proved an key part of the process that led to the former Boston University student Diffley agreeing that his future lay in the UK after just one season in Scandinavia.

Both Steelers’ head coach Fox and Diffley consulted with Thompson over the move, with the 55-year-old convinced they would be a good match for each other for 2023-24.

Diffley’s arrival in Sheffield will mark his sixth season as a pro, having made the transition from college hockey to the senior game in the East Coast league before spending two seasons in France with Cergy-Pontoise ahead of his one season in Odense.

“I’ve done a lot of work on him and he’s one of those guys that, when you watch the tape, you love what you see,” said Fox.

“Obviously I reached out to Paul (Thompson) on him, to see what his thoughts were and Paul liked him and would have liked to have him back with him.

“He is a very good, elite-skating two-way defenceman. He plays with some jam, has unreal gap control, unreal retrievals and I feel like he’s going to be a huge addition to our group with his size, skating ability and how hard he plays in his own end.

“I got this deal done very early in the summer, he was one of the first guys that I signed. I really love his game, love the pace he plays with. I expect him to come in and log huge minutes and be an impact player for us.

“He’s looking for a new challenge, a new experience and he wants to win. He’s heard great things about us as an organisation, and we firmly believe he’s going to play a big part in helping us achieve what we want next season.”

Diffley, who won three NCAA Division One titles while at Boston University is convinced Sheffield could give him the success that he has craved since the last of those college titles back in 2018.

But he expects to work hard for it and appreciates that he will have to earn his opportunities to make a significant contribution at the Utilita Arena.

“When you go through the negotiations you want to know where you stand and from what I’ve been told, I’m going to have to earn everything,” said Diffley. “Obviously there are no promises made but there’s going to be an opportunity for me to put up some pretty good minutes this coming year, in pretty much all kinds of game situations.

“And that’s all I needed to hear, that the opportunities will be there but, also, it’s good to hear that nothing is guaranteed and that you have to prove your worth.”