Belfast Giants' Ryan Smith clear 'we can’t let any game slip by us' with silverware on the line
Belfast Giants stand within two wins of this weekend being crowned the Elite Ice Hockey League champions.
The target remains two wins against the Glasgow Clan – one game at the SSE and the second in Scotland - and they would also like to see the Sheffield Steelers and Nottingham Panthers split their two games.
Giants forward Ryan Smith said: “It was very busy (this week) and the guys had a really cool experience of St Patrick’s here in Northern Ireland.
“While we would have far preferred to be playing in the Challenge Cup against the Panthers at the SSE, we did get a chance to enjoy the St Patrick’s celebrations.
“But it is what is, we didn’t get to the final and we're getting to keep our focus on the final games in the league campaign instead.”
The Panthers, who still remain a title threat, will of course bring some positive momentum into their games this weekend after winning the Challenge Cup tie against Coventry Blaze on Wednesday night.
The Steelers can do the Giants a big favour in their opening game of the weekend in Sheffield by beating the Panthers and squashing that momentum.
Looking back at last weekend’s four-point double-header against the Steelers in Sheffield, Smith feels the two wins have pretty much eliminated the Steelers from the championship bar a slim chance.
He said: “It was probably the biggest weekend of the year for us with the big two wins on the road.
“We knew that the Steelers were creeping up behind us in the standings, so we all knew just how important those two games and the four points would be in the league campaign. We couldn't have been happier to get wins in both those games.”
He added: “We can’t let any game slip by us. We need to go into those games fully focused.
“These two games are just as important as last weekend and we want wins in both games. We’ll take one game at a time. You can’t control the other results, just the games that you are playing in.
“Take one game at a time and keep on winning. And we will win the league when we win the league…we have put in seven months of hard work to be where we are right now in the league.”