Excel Hull Stingrays 5-4 Belfast Giants
A Konstantin Kalmikov double as well as strikes from Jamie Thompson, Matt Reynolds and Pavel Gomenyuk sealed a surprise Excel Hull Stingrays victory over title chasing Belfast Giants. With defencemen Troy Neumeier and Stuart Kerr out with injuries the Stingrays held on after leading 5-2 with 10 minutes following a quick double.
After a 7-1 defeat to the Manchester Phoenix things looked bleak for the Stingrays, who had lost eight games in a row previous to this game, however, with injured Troy Neumeier helping coach Rick Strachan on the bench, the Stingrays turned the negative energy from that defeat into a monumental upset, their second victory over the Giants in two games.
The Stingrays now face a Challenge Cup encounter against the Cardiff Devils in Wales on Wednesday before their final game in the Challenge Cup on Sunday at home to the Basingstoke Bison, with the Stingrays already all but out of the tournament. It is expected that the Stingrays will also begin the search for a replacement for experienced defenceman Troy Neumeier, who was ruled out for the rest of the season through injury on Saturday night.
SOG: 23-44
PIM: 2-4
MOM: Stingrays- Belfast-
