Sheffield Steelers' Matt Petgrave hails his perfect partner Niklas Nevalainen

The Canadian defenceman is the top 'plus-minus' skater for Steelers with +17 and is the architect of many of Sheffield's finest plays so far, in the 2022-23 EIHL season.

While his skill and vision are there for all to see, his almost telepathic understanding with Finnish partner Niklas Nevalainen should not be overlooked. Petgrave describes him as the perfect foil.

"I can't say enough good things about him," he commented. "I think we got off to a real good start in camp," he said looking back at pre-season which persuaded Fox to play the pair together from the very first league game. We haven't really looked back, day by day I feel we are getting better and better."

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He says there are set plays in which "we don't even need to talk about" - the duo simply gets the job done. As a result, Nevalainen is the club's second plus-minus player - with +16.

"I think this is something pretty special how we feed off each other," said Petgrave. "I feel like we are not playing that much 'D' zone because we are controlling a lot of the offensive play..and that makes the game easier for us."

Petgrave says he tries to be responsible defensively but is thankful that coach Aaron Fox allows him to play the game his way. And he admits he can be his own worst critic - fans can easily detect his angst if he misplaces a pass.

The player said the team "got away" from their game plan against Glasgow Clan for a short time, in last Saturday's win but he "thought we responded in the third period.

"I think we came out and showed what we can do."

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The 30-year-old said the group of Steelers he plays with is making his debut season in England "a lot of fun." He complimented the quality of the UK league, after playing in Slovakia and the Czech Republic last term.

There were no easy games and the team had to perform at a high level to gain the points. The former ECHL and AHL d-man is the club's top penalty taker in league play with 50 minutes in 14 games. He is second to the top of the pile when it comes to assists, behind only Daniel Ciampini.

Petgrave, who started off in minor hockey the Greater Toronto Hockey League has some compassion for team-mate Mason Mitchell. The winger was late to the team because of a pre-season injury.

He finally got off the mark to score twice against Coventry Blaze on November 9, but three days later was scratched from the roster, to face Glasgow. Petgrave said Sheffield had a stacked line up and "it is unfortunate things happen like that" but insisted Mitchell was a positive character and would get back in the team.