JEFF Legue's brilliant end-of-season form has guaranteed him a place in Sheffield Steelers' class of 2008-9.
The gifted Canadian forward's debut season with Sheffield was blighted by injury; he missed nine matches.
Once back in the line-up, he struggled, initially, to make an impact. But when the Play Offs beckoned, Legue had become the player that Dave Matsos had originally hoped he would be - fast, defensively-sound, tactically aware and a permanent danger when in the opposition half. While he didn't score in the final six matches, his pace and vision was key to the Play Off success.
Matsos says: "Jeff is about a lot more than just his incredible speed. We have seen him play gritty, get dirty and score some important goals.
"I think that we will see even more from him next season, he now knows the league, the rinks and the other teams.
"There are not many players who can change a game and unpick that lock, but Jeff is one of those.
"Special teams are so important if we are going to challenge for the league title and Jeff can play various positions on the power play and penalty kill.
Legue commented: "The way we ended the season with the play off win was fantastic and I think all of us want to repeat that feeling. We are all confident we can replicate that Championship win."
Legue scored 22 goals and 38 assists in 59 games.
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The full article contains 343 words and appears in Sheffield Star newspaper.