V
Saturday 5th September: Excel Hull Stingrays (8th) v Sheffield Steelers (7th) @ Hull Arena, F/O 5.30pm Sunday 6th September: Edinburgh Capitals (6th) v Excel Hull Stingrays (8th) @ Murrayfield Ice Rink, F/O 6pm
Stingrays: L L L L W
Sheffield: W W W L L
Edinburgh: L L L W W
Last 3 Meetings
v Sheffield
22/02/09 4-2 L A
11/10/09 1-4 L H
21/11/09 4-1 L A
v Edinburgh
03/10/09 4-1 W H
25/10/09 3-2 L A
07/11/09 4-3 W H
Season Series
v Sheffield: 0-2, 0 points, 2 GF, 8 GA
v Edinburgh: 2-2, 4 points, 12 GF, 16 GA
Players to Watch
Stingrays: Jeff Glowa (23 GP 6+17 18 PIM) Season after season Glowa steps up to be the Stingrays go-to guy. Despite promises that this season would be different, it is a familiar sight at the top of the team's scoring charts, with 33 year old Glowa leading the pack with 23 points in 24 games. Although goalscoring wise he has struggled to match the form that saw him hit 33 goals last season, he broke a nine game goalless streak in the win over Belfast last weekend, in which he also netted in the shootout, and has six goals for the season, ranking him second in team scoring.
Sheffield: Joey Talbot (24GP 13+10 20 PIM) After starting his third season in Sheffield in his usual quiet but deadly manner, Talbot stepped it up on a big scale last weekend in the Continental Cup semi finals. The 29 year old Ontario native got out of his sick bed to play a massive part in the Steelers qualification for the Continental Cup final with wins over Maribor, Den Haag and Bolzano. He sits behind Jeff Legue in goals and points for the Steelers this season but has four goals in his last two Elite League games.
Edinburgh: Dan Welch (3GP 1+1 0 PIM) Brought in alongside fellow forward Marc Lefebvre to replace talented, highly paid defenceman Chris Allen, Welch made an immediate impact recording a goal and an assist in his second game back against former side Coventry Blaze to help the Caps record a crazy 8-7 victory. In 05/06 Welch played 47 games in the Elite League with Nottingham and Coventry, scoring 23 goals and 46 points. He continued his European adventure with spells in France, Switzerland and Denmark between 2006 and 2009 before returning to the ECHL and CHL, where he signed from two weeks ago.
Between the Pipes
Stingrays: Tommy Sandahl (25 GP 4.21 GAA 89.7 sv.%)
Sheffield: Andrew Verner (15 GP 3.5 GAA 89.6 sv.%)
Edinburgh: Cody Rudkowski (21 GP 3.75 GAA 90.1 sv.%)
Absentees
Stingrays: Pavel Gomenyuk (doubt; rib)
Sheffield: Scott Basiuk (back), Rod Sarich (broken thumb)
Edinburgh: Doug Christiansen (broken patella), Martin Cingel (knee), Darius Pliskauskas (broken finger)
Predictions
Stingrays 3-4 Sheffield
Edinburgh 2-3 Stingrays
