Prolific Legue is on Belfast and Dowd’s radar

The Elite League leaders arrive in Sheffield seven points ahead of their second-place hosts, who still have three games in hand. The Steelers then have to go to Belfast for a double-header weekend on March 16-17.

Dowd has been a sensation since ending three years with the Steelers by moving to Belfast last summer, leading the scoring for Doug Christiansen’s team with 30 goals and 30 assists in 41 games.

But it is his former Steelers team-mate Legue – now in his sixth season with the club – who Dowd fears the most, with the 30-year-old Canadian leading the way for the defending league champions with 71 points in 52 games, 29 of those as goals.

Not surprisingly, Steelers’ player-coach Ryan Finnerty announced on Tuesday morning that he had already snapped the popular centre up for next season.

“Steelers have got threats all over the ice but you have to say Legue is their main danger,” said Dowd. “He’s just a great player, can turn on a sixpence and just be gone – he’s so fast. He creates so much space for himself and he’s been one of the most consistent scorers since he first came over here.

“If we win our other games and Steelers do the same then it obviously will come down to these three games between us. The whole season has been tight playing against the Steelers, it’s always a good battle with them and I’m looking forward to some good games.”

Dowd’s move last year came as a major disappointment to many Steelers fans, who had seen him develop at pace since first being introduced to the Elite League back in 2006 by former head coach Dave Matsos.

The 23-year-old, who started his senior career with hometown club Billingham Bombers back in 2003, still resides in Sheffield during the close season, but has no regrets about transferring his career to the Odyssey Arena.

“It’s a nice club to play at,” said Dowd, who scored three goals and three assists last weekend as Belfast followed up an 8-0 win at Hull Stingrays with a 5-0 triumph at Coventry Blaze.

“I was sad to leave Sheffield because I loved my time there - they gave me my big chance and they’re a great organisation.

“I just felt it was time to spread my wings a little bit because I’d basically spent all my adult life in Sheffield, from school I went to Florida for a year and then from Florida I went to Sheffield and had been there ever since. It was time to experience somewhere different.

“In Belfast, I’ve been given more responsibility - for example in Sheffield I was never really given the chance to play short-handed for instance.

“And Dougie has given me that chance to play short-handed it and I think I’ve taken it with both hands. I think I’m playing pretty well. Doug is a good coach. He’s a very good stats guy and will sit you down and point out where you’re perhaps going wrong and right. I’m enjoying my time here very much.”

Steelers are expected to reveal today the full extent of his injured ankle which has kept him out since the 4-2 home defeat to Belfast at the beginning of this month.

The 36-year-old winger and assistant coach had a further scan on Monday with the results expected to be known late on Tuesday night with the fear being his season may be over.

Player-coach Ryan Finnerty is hopeful key defenceman Rod Sarich - out since late November after a serious kidney injury – may be ready to return to the Steelers line-up for the visit of Belfast.

Sarich has been skating for the past couple of weeks with, it seems, no noticeable side-effects.

“Roddy has skated well, for the last 10 days he has also participated in full contact drills and looks good,” said Finnerty.

“The decision will be one for him and we will wait as long as we need to, giving him as much time as possible to make the final decision. Roddy lost 15 per cent of a kidney in that freak injury – it has to be his decision to return.”

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