Sheffield Steelers save their best until last to secure maximum Elite League return over Fife Flyers

Justin Hodgman prepars for a face-off in Fife on Sunday night. Picture courtesy of Jill McFarlane/EIHL.Justin Hodgman prepars for a face-off in Fife on Sunday night. Picture courtesy of Jill McFarlane/EIHL.
Justin Hodgman prepars for a face-off in Fife on Sunday night. Picture courtesy of Jill McFarlane/EIHL.
FOUR third period goals enabled Sheffield Steelers to complete an impressive comeback in Scotland and secure a four-point weekend against bottom club Fife Flyers.

Aaron Fox’s team were 2-0 down after less than four minutes in Kirkcaldy but slowly found their way back level with second period strikes from Justin Hodgman and Tanner Eberle.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But it was in the final 20 minutes where the visitors showed why they remain the team to catch at the top of the Elite League regular season standings.

The game-winning goal came from the stick of Mathias Sointu at 41.44, the Steelers then doubling their lead with a shorthanded effort from Marc-Olivier Vallerand at 49.02.

Tanner Eberle scores during the first period in Saturday's 3-1 Elite League win at home to Fife Flyers. Picture courtesy of Dean Woolley/EIHL.Tanner Eberle scores during the first period in Saturday's 3-1 Elite League win at home to Fife Flyers. Picture courtesy of Dean Woolley/EIHL.
Tanner Eberle scores during the first period in Saturday's 3-1 Elite League win at home to Fife Flyers. Picture courtesy of Dean Woolley/EIHL.

What has been a tough campaign so far for Fife got even worse in the final 10 minutes when Martin Latal and Tommaso Traversa also got on the board to complete a 6-2 win.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It leaves the Steelers two points clear of second-placed Cardiff Devils and with three games in hand, Belfast Giants sitting five points behind the leaders on the same number of games.

Fox’s players were made to work harder on home ice by Fife on Saturday, particularly after Fife made it a one-goal game through Brandon Magee with just under four minutes remaining.

The Steelers were 2-0 up after the first 20 minutes through Vojtěch Polák and Eberle, but were able to eventually able to close the game out when the Czech forward added to his second-minute opener with an empty-net strike with just 10 seconds left on the clock.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.