Rapid Solcitors Hull Stingrays face Edinburgh Capitals at Hull Arena tonight (Saturday) at 6.30pm. Here, coach Sylvain Cloutier explains why he's glad to be back in front of home fans.
AFTER three games in Scotland it's nice to be back in front of our own fans at Hull Arena tonight.
It's been hard with all the stuff happening, the arena flooding and players getting injured.
We lost Sam Towner and then Tom Squires in Fife last Saturday to facial injuries.
To see Sam lying on the ice with blood everywhere and the same thing happen to Tom on the team bench a few minutes later was really tough to take.
It's not being cold or anything, but we had to focus on getting the job done and check between periods how they were, as we knew the medical staff were taking good care of them. I saw Tom on a stretcher being put in the ambulance, and that was the last I saw of him until after the match.
Sam came back to the hotel, but was throwing up so we took him to the hospital in a taxi. We got back at 4am and still had to play later on.
However, despite all our problems we've taken four points out of a possible six in Scotland this week.
That would have been a great achievement if we'd had anywhere near a full squad, but to do it with so many players missing was outstanding.
We beat Edinburgh last Sunday so we need another win to keep those points coming and move closer to Coventry, who are sixth.
With no game tomorrow there's nothing to save ourselves for in terms of energy levels.
We should have more bodies back in the line-up so hopefully we can come out and get the job done.
Stingrays reporter Cathy Wigham asks if Sylvain Cloutier's side have enough fuel left in the tank to beat Edinburgh at Hull Arena.
WILL the last man standing please turn off the lights?
Stingrays have felt the full force of the domino effect.
Matt Suderman left, then Bobby Chamberlain departed on GB under-20s duty, three players picked up injuries in one night, and two couldn't play in midweek due to work commitments – the list just went on.
Suffice to say, there was plenty of room for the remaining 11 out-ice skaters and two keepers to stretch out on the team bus to and from Dundee on Thursday.
The good news is veteran Pavel Gomenyuk proved playing ice hockey is like riding a bike – you don't forget the art once mastered.
The even better news is Hull Arena is back in business after last week's flood nightmare.
It was shut for less than a week and opened in time for Stingrays to train on Tuesday morning.
In essence, the murky Humber's presence caused the arena's cooling plant to trip out rather than fry its circuitry.
Hence, the Arena closure was measured in days, rather than weeks.
In the worst-case scenario, exactly how feasible would it have been for Stingrays to train and play out of town?
Arguably, not very, so perhaps the hockey gods have been smiling on Stingrays after all, in their own sweet way.
In the meantime, Stingrays have strung together three amazing efforts to collect a point out of Fife, two from Edinburgh and another one in Dundee to enhance both their overall Elite League standing and position at the top of the Gardiner Conference.
Fingers firmly crossed, Stingrays will have Gomenyuk and Jamie Chilcott back in the line-up for tonight's visit of Edinburgh.
Having beaten the Scots with a depleted squad on their home ice less than a week ago, you'd think Stingrays could rustle up another victory with a fuller team tonight in Hull.
You'd like to believe so, but there's nowt so strange and illogical as sport – it's littered with 'who'd have thunk it' stories.
Fortunately, Stingrays have no game tomorrow night, which is probably just as well.
Surely there can't be much petrol left in the tank after two Scottish trips inside a week with such a small squad?
However, is there even enough fuel to get the job done tonight?
