Steelers eye play-off success while Hull look ahead to next campaign

The odds of Hull making the play-offs were already long going into the final weekend of the regular season before a 4-3 victory for Braehead Clan over Dundee Stars on Friday night made it mathematically impossible.

But that did not stop Sylvain Cloutier’s team from bringing the curtain down on owner Bobby McEwan’s first season in charge with a bang.

They pushed hosts Sheffield Steelers close on Saturday night before going down 4-3. But the positive finish they craved came at home last night, seeing off former owners Coventry, who no doubt had one eye on next weekend’s two-legged play-off quarter-final against the Steelers.

Jason Silverthorn got the scoring underway in front of a fired-up home crowd, notching past Peter Hirsch at 8.33.

It was Jereme Tendler who doubled the lead in the 19th minute, scoring unassisted for his 43rd goal of what has been another outstanding campaign which saw him comfortably finish as the league’s top scorer.

Captain Kurtis Dulle proved his offensive prowess yet again to make it 3-0 with his 12th goal of the season at 27.32.

Greg Leeb gave Coventry brief hope at 49.25, before Matty Davies scored his second in as many nights to wrap up the points.

At Ice Sheffield on Saturday, it was the Steelers who got off to a flying start, Jeff Legue putting them in front with only 47 seconds on the clock.

Hull were back on level terms at 1.20 with a strike from Tendler and then took the lead through Davies, scored at 7.01.

However, two goals in just over three minutes saw the game switch back in favour of the home side.

Danny Meyers was on the mark at 12.14 before Simon Ferguson struck at 15.23 to give them a 3-2 lead. Steelers increased their lead with a goal from Shawn Limpright at 24.01 and that was how it remained until 36.16 when Dulle made it a one-goal game on the powerplay.

While Hull’s Cloutier and McEwan will begin preparations for next season slightly earlier than they had hoped, Steelers’ head coach Ryan Finnerty will set about preparing for the play-offs – his side finishing their regular campaign off with a 3-2 defeat at home to league runners-up Belfast Giants last night.

Twice they held the lead through goals from Ferguson and Steven Goertzen, but strikes from Kevin Saurette, Matt Towe and Noah Clarke earned Belfast both points and the Erhardt Conference title.