Between The Blue Lines

Where to begin.
I feel like this playoffs, starting with the Guildford home and home, was just a condensed, 4 game version of what this season has been for us, gift wrapped for easy consumption.

Sheffield Steelers 6 – 2 Guildford Flames

Game one against Guildford was one of much frustration, but not for a lack of trying. A game that ended 1-1 with a combined 72 shots on target, 41 in the favour of Sheffield, and saw Jonathan “Razer” Racine get suspended for a game due to a blow to the head on Evan Jasper, both teams had every right to be frustrated at the outcome.
Come game 2 though, a minute and 44 seconds into the contest, Dominic Cormier gets a tap in from the crease to put Sheffield 2-1 ahead on the tie, and they never looked back, turning Guildford over 5-1 on the night and 6-2 on aggregate, in a game that saw, at least for my money and to my eyes, everyone put in a full 60 minute effort, with IBN even getting time with the big boys in the lineup, an audition for what was to come against Manchester.

Sheffield Steelers 6 – 0 Manchester Storm

The 2nd leg against Guildford was one in which a lot of narratives about this team were questioned, but it seemed like against Manchester, they were put to bed. From the outside looking in, a team that scraped in on penalties vs 3rd placed Nottingham, against Sheffield, who’d just breezed by Guildford, you’d think that Steelers were the clear cut favourite here – but ask any Steelers fan, and there was at least a bit of doubt on that assertion.
Manchester have been a bit of a bogey team for us this year, especially true over the Christmas period, which saw them beat us 5-3 and 3-0 in back to back games, with a few touch and go games throughout the season, this wasn’t a game that looked like one that would end 6-0 before it started. But it did.
Coming into this game it was announced that nor Shudra or Ritchie would ice, which meant the top 6 was chucked in a blender, we were running 7D (technically 8), and Kelly had been noted down as 4RW. Which, if you dont know what that means in an Aaron Fox team, unless we’re winning 9-0 with 5 minutes to go, you’re not getting ice time. Ultimately, Ritchie and Shudra didn’t get on the ice at all, Ritchie was with his partner, welcoming their child into the world, and Shudra was out injured.
Ryan Tait of all people opened the scoring 11 minutes into the first period, followed by Mitch Heard at around the same point in the 2nd period, and then the third period it just all unravelled for Manchester.
A headloss here, a sending off from the bench there, both Mitch Heard and Tait getting an extra goal each, with an Evan Jasper breakaway and a Stephen Harper one-timer, bundled with a full 60 minutes of good, solid defensive effort, chasing pucks down, and getting into a team who very much give it back.
Was also nice to see IBN get a decent chunk of time on the third line, with Jasper and Dowd (as Ryan Tait had moved up to fill the void left by Ritchie) which I imagine is part of a bigger audition for him making the step-up next season.
Once the train started rolling, it never stopped – until the very next day, when it came to a screaching halt.

Sheffield Steelers 2 – 5 Cardiff Devils

aaaaah. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah. This team man. Look, all credit to Cardiff, they earned that. They were scortching hot coming into the playoffs, managed to figure out their issues with the power play, their penalty kill was buzzing, they were killing teams 5 on 5, and looked like the absolute real deal, ready for their weekend to begin – and so it did. Granted, they did struggle a small amount against a Glasgow team fighting for their lives, but against Sheffield, that game was a mere blip.
Opening the scoring on quite possibly the stupidest power play opportunity I’ve ever seen, the lovely lovely narratives that had been put to bed, came running back. Mitch Heard, within a minute, high-sticks someone and draws blood. PK was looking good, as it has all season, but with ~20 seconds left on the first kill, Olischefski opens the scoring.
The next 2 minutes, Sheffield did well to do what they’ve done all season and killed off the penalty, and eventually, slowly grew into the period, eventually getting even on shots on goal and fashioning out one or two decent chances.
To start the second period, Sheffield looked much the better team, getting it back to 1-1 with a Kevin Tansey one-timer from the circle, and playing with the puck in Cardiff’s zone a hell of a lot more than they’d managed in the first, and it looked like a case of very much when, and not if, they’d take the lead.
But, that’s all well and good, until you turn your brain off for 5 minutes.
Yaremko’s first goal was very much a case of utter stupidity from Sheffield, with a great shot, much to Yaremko’s credit.

I can’t give you a reasonable answer as to why he’s afforded this much time and space, but he is, and by the time he’s loaded up for the shot, seemingly no one’s tried to do much of anything to stop him, apart from Dougherty takes a lie down

Whilst I’ve seen this put on Dougherty, I’m not 100% convinced this is his fault as much as it a total team lapse. 2 players watched Fournier cross the blue line, the same 2 players watched him make the pass and the same 2 players end up behind him. Maybe Doughterty could have come across to make this a 3 on 2, but thats all in hindsight. Shit defending. Again.

So thats 2-1 Cardiff. Yaremko’s second goal was very much a case of utter stupidity from Sheffield, with a great shot, much to Yaremko’s credit (if you think you’re having Déjà vu, I have just copied and pasted that from what I wrote before)

Cardiff get the puck in deep to get a line change, Diffley gets on it and is immediately hounded by Sandford. Instead of putting this puck the opposite way down the boards, with seven seconds left, and instead of just clearing the zone, he for some reason takes this on his backhand, trying to spin Sandford off

Sandford instead says “I aint buying all that” and gets in a board battle, and wins it, like Cardiff have done pretty much all night to this point

Yaremko is streaking in all alone down Main Street and easy as you like, over Greenfield’s blocker with 2 seconds left in the 2nd.

There’s been much made of this type of scenario for Sheffield this year – absolutely dominating stretches of games and just not finding the net.
Granted, Cardiff getting 2 late ones isn’t their fault, they’re just good at pouncing on their opportunities, but this game shouldn’t have got to 3-1 like that, but it did, and it’s genuinely no-ones fault except ours.
I can empathise a little bit here – it must feel absolutely shit to have as many decent/good shots as they did and not get rewarded for it, but ultimately, you have to pick yourselves up, be professional about it, and keep going. Onto the third period.

Cardiff weren’t too bothered about trying to score in this period I dont think. They’d got 2 late ones, pretty much sealed it dead for us. Until Ryan Tait(!!) scored (again!!).

Where this version of Ryan Tait came from this weekend I’m not sure. How this puck gets in, I’m not sure either, but it did, and it’s 3-2. With 6 minutes left. We all knows what’s coming.

2 minutes left and Greenfield is pulled for an o-zone face off, with Heard standing over the dot. Sam Tremblay has already shown in this game that him and Harper can run a set play off of a faceoff. Sam Tremblay in this game has gone 16/12 in the dot. Mitch Heard has gone 6/10. And yet.
The face off is lost, Harper gets to it first but it bobbles on him, gets to Josh MacDonald who rarely makes a mistake, 4-2.
Greener is pulled again, and it’s 5-2. And that’s all she wrote.

In a season thats been mired with periods of utter shit, followed by very convincing winstreaks, which were ended with similar periods of crap, unconvincing wins, and everything in between, this game felt like a good summation of the entire thing. I can’t fault the effort here either. Coming into this game we knew Ritchie and Shudra weren’t making it. Early into the game with Cardiff, we lost Juusola. Dowd’s nose got bust open at some point. Tremblay has his kneecap demolished the game before. And still, this game was kept competitive, until it wasn’t.

Ultimately, I do think this is a case of one team wanting it more, and Cardiff did just that. First to loose pucks, absolutely putting their bodies on the line to block shots, taking hits to make plays, hitting to make plays and create turnovers, and leaving everything out on the ice. All whilst not taking a penalty the entire weekend, which is mad, but we have seen it before (Playoff SF, Steelers vs Fife in 23/24, neither team took a penalty over the 120 minutes).

With that, I’d like to take this time to just give a few special mentions, on both sides.
Nolan Yaremko played 14 games this season, due to injury. What a warrior to have barely touched the ice, and they play such a pivitol role in winning that game.
Brett Ferguson, I do not like you, but I respect you. You’ve been a villain in this league for ages, left Guildford this year to go back home, and then came back when Cardiff were in need, and you’ve been great this season. Hat off you to you, big man. And, great show of respect to the Guildford fans at the end of the game too.
Riley Brandt has very much turned around his moniker of worst import in the league, and has gone from brute, to somewhat a unicorn this season, from 5 goals last season to 18 this season, whilst still flirting with 100 PIM.
Paul Thompson came into the league with a bit of a fog around him, at least from Steelers fans. Leaving Sheffield to be replaced by Tom Barasso in our banter year, it’s quite easy to forget that the man has a grandslam. Coached that game to a tee, and got his rewards for it.

Kevin Tansey. This one is a tough pill to swallow, but first and foremost, thank you. Donning the jersey for three seasons now, and retiring here, it has been an honour to see you play for us. Whether it be the stellar season you had in the granslam, or wearing the C whenever Dowd was injured/unavailable, stepping up big last year and putting in meaningful minutes on the wing last year and scoring big goals whenever it was needed – 2 come to mind first, the 3-1 winner to seal the grandslam, and the 1-1 goal to tie it against Cardiff, you’ve been a model citizen for this club, and it’s genuinely sad to see you go. Thank you for choosing to retire a Steeler, and I hope the club do something genuinely special to honour you. I think I speak for everyone when I say you’re always welcome back in Sheffield if you ever make the journey back over.

Sam Tremblay. Coming up from the Steeldogs last year when Golod left, and putting up nearly a point per game, I can’t say a bad word about you. Absolutely put your heart and soul into every shift, and even with a bust open nose, you still played like an absolute fucking maniac with a fishbowl on. One of the few players I think who revels in the chaos, and does his best work when he’s allowed to crash and bang. Best of luck with whatever you do in the future, you’ve earned it.

I don’t know what the future holds for this team. I do know that, even just on the face of it, there needs to be wholesale change. This team came in with list of CV’s and previous championship experience long enough to make you think it’d be a walkover. I’ve got a longer piece, or a few actually, coming on the season as a whole, and my wishlist for next season, but they’re both still a bit away from being finished yet. Till next season.