David Simms Sheffield Steelers ice hockey column: It’s back-to-back wins we need

For Belfast not to finish 2nd would mean an incredible last few games from them and Cardiff choking huge style – that won’t happen.

So if after this weekend’s final league games for all 11 clubs, I will be cow kicked if it isn’t Belfast vs Sheffield next Saturday and Steelers vs Belfast at the Arena on Sunday 7th April.

For the Steelers to progress they must do something they haven’t done in a while and that’s play two great back to back games on the same weekend.

We have seen outstanding Saturdays beating Nottingham, Cardiff and the Giants but they have been followed by disappointing and poor performances on the road the day after.

More on that series next week if it is to be the Steelers and the Giants in the play off quarter finals.

Funny how the year has gone, isn’t it?

September and we are dreaming of a title push, October and November and we are ready to jump off a cliff.

We lose 13-3 to Dundee in a weekend after Christmas, my personal low point of the year and I did look up the telephone number of the Samaritans.

In recent weeks though this team has found some good home form, the victories over the past three weekends have given us hope that all is not lost.

We see signs of brilliance but also a lack of consistency.

The great things about the play offs here in the UK is that its 4 games, that’s all. Anyone can win it.

Next Monday is our end of season awards.

For me it’s pretty easy. Our best British player has been Ben O’Connor and our best player has been Ben O’Connor.

Bringing Benny home was the best bit of business done by the club all year hands down.

I give credit to others, Jonathan Phillips has had a stand out season and has contributed offensively where others have failed to do so.

In fact our Brits as a whole haven’t let us down. Dowdy would have probably been our top scorer if he had been healthy. We never speak about Davey Phillips and we should, it’s remiss of us we don’t acknowledge him more.

Jackson has saved our bacon on a few occasions between the pipes, his brother, in his first year pro, has worked it out and will be an important cog in the wheel in years to come.

Young Kieran Brown too, a lot of hopes are on that young man’s shoulders in years to come. In a difficult year his ice time hasn’t been as he would have wished though in recent weeks he has played a useful part alongside Brandon and Jonas Westering.

Whilst we will all remember this season for perhaps not the best of reasons there have been some positives, the recent form of Anthony DeLuca for one.

If you are to make a run in the play offs you need two things, goaltending and goals. Jackson and Anthony will be busy men next weekend whoever our opponents are.

Now let’s go to Milton Keynes on Sunday and deliver one last great league performance