What German ice hockey was like for two Sheffield Steelers

In their spell with Passau Black Hawks - Phillips played eight games, DeLuca seven - their team were beaten on every occasion.

But the numbers don't reveal the whole picture.

And both Steelers are grateful to Passau for the chance to represent them.

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Phillips and DeLuca returned home to England and Canada respectively before Christmas, after mutually agreeing to end their stints in Lower Bavaria.

"The club was absolutely fantastic in the way they treated us, they couldn't do enough for us," said Phillips, the Sheffield and GB captain who sought employment abroad when the EIHL was closed by coronavirus.

"The background is that Passau had volunteered for promotion after a team from the Oberliga dropped out.

"The players were all local guys, who had full time jobs.

"It was tough for us as we didn't have the younger DEL guys (who had dropped down to the third flight when Covid halted their own division) that all the other sides seemed to have.

"We had a great bunch of guys who worked hard, the team was just inexperienced and lacked structure.

"On the ice, we just couldn't get the puck so couldn't create anything, offensively.

"There were times when we were outshot 50 or 60 shots to 20, I think that shows how much of the puck we had.

"I was blocking eight or nine shots a game, one-timers from the slot, and I'll be honest I was thinking: 'Hang on - do I really want to be doing this?'

"I suppose we were like the old Edinburgh Capitals of the League! It was a shame we couldn't find our game and be a little bit more competitive, although we did show it in spells."

Training for games brought its own problems, too.

"No gym was open because of lockdown, there wasn't one in the rink, we couldn't get in the rink any earlier than an hour before practice. It was literally a case of turn up, kit on, practice and then get off.

"Robert Dowd and Marco Vallerand (Steelers in Italy) have a key to their gym and can get in.

"But that wasn't the case for us and Passau was a team brand new to the league and learning how to play in it," said Phillips, who iced on the same line as DeLuca, as he had at some stages of the last Steeler season.

"Two players in 20 isn't going to make a huge difference, is it?"

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The Welshman said he and DeLuca benefitted more out of playing against stronger teams than they did blending in to their own side.

Despite that irony, the pair's time in Germany ended harmoniously.

"We had just been thankful to have been given a job and been playing for six weeks.

"The end was a mutual thing, we'd heard that there was a chance of the Elite League going again and Passau had heard that as well.

"They were a very low budget team and they just thought that within time we'd be going back to the EIHL anyway and they had a chance of recruiting two cheaper guys that really

helped their budget, probably earning about a quarter of what we were making, not that we were making much.

"They came to us with that and we totally understood.

"For us just before Christmas it was good timing. We were happy to go and at the end of the day, they couldn't afford us," said Phillips, who is currently home-schooling his two sons.

"I wouldn't say the losses ruined the experience, though.

"You always want to be on the best team, winning every single game, but it was still a good experience and we are both very appreciative they they took us in."

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