Sheffield Steelers' coach Aaron Fox says new boy Polak is 'awesome' addition

The Czech forward played with distinction for Sheffield in the wins last weekend over Cardiff Devils, away, and Dundee, at home.

Fox said the centreman had been ‘excellent’ in the two matches.

The skater had not touched the ice for eight to 10 days prior to coming "so was a little bit gassed after the Cardiff game.”

"But the way he sees the ice is next level" Fox said.

"He is a very, very good passer, excellent on the power play, if he gets a little time and space he is always going to make the right play.

"He is reliable defensively, good on the (face off) dot, he has stepped right in and been awesome," said Fox.

Polak scored on his debut in Wales and has been paired, so far, with Marco Vallerand and Martin Latal, which means he has a variety of potent offensive skills on either side of him.

Steelers have two players tied as top goalscorers, Vallerand and Robert Dowd (11 goals) both of whom are recently back from injury.

While Justin Hodgman and Daine Todd lead the pack in assists (16) according to steelersstats.co.uk.

The EIHL stats reveal Vallerand is the top plus-minus player on the roster (+11) while Hodgman is just ahead of John Armstrong in face-off wins.

League-leading Sheffield take on Coventry Blaze at home on Saturday before the return fixture away on Sunday.

Fox expects two close encounters.

"The two years I have been here, we have always had good hockey games" said Fox of the Midlands outfit.

He said the Skydome was a tough venue to get points from. "They are very good on the rush, I think they are well-coached, it should be another tough weekend."

Steeler Cole Shudra, who had 14 games for Blaze in the mini-series this year, played for Sheffield last weekend, Fox saying he was "thrown into the fire" at Cardiff, following his return from an upper-body injury.

Dom Stokes, SCT Live Head of Live Events & Venues, say Arena staff members are monitoring the Covid situation in case new protection measures become required for indoor venues. But so far everything is as-you-were.

He told The Star: "Nothing really changes for us, at the minute. We have always strongly recommended face coverings inside the building, there are spot checks on Covid certification before entry.

"I always recommend taking a test before coming to an event. We open doors 90 minutes before face off so people can get there early to avoid crowds where possible and get through all the checks we are doing.

"Obviously we are watching the situation on a daily basis and be ready to react to whatever scenario is thrown at us."