Kingdom Of The Giants :: Belfast Giants Fan Community, News & Views
Steelers Stormed
02-Dec-2006On a stormy windy night in Belfast, marking the 6th anniversary of the opening of the O, it was the visiting Sheffield Steelers that were blown away, by an astounding performance from Coors Belfast Giants netminder Mike Minard. Although many were expecting the game reports to be all about Skiehar vs Clouthier Round 2, it was the Giants number one goalie who gained the right kind of headlines, in a Man of the Match performance of the highest quality.
Skiehar and Clouthier sorted their differences early on, Clouthier taking a slight edge out of the early bout with Skiehar doing well to cope with the much bigger man. That allowed us to get on with the hockey. And there was plenty of great free flowing hockey to follow in a high tempo first period. Todd Kelman fired the Giants in front with a powerplay goal that seemed to be deflected just in front. Mike Minard sprawling around his crease kept the Giants alive with some simply outstanding saves.
The second period continued the same as the first at a high pace, with hit after hit being thrown. And once again the Giants powerplay was the difference, Mark Dutiaume taking his time to pick his spot in the open net after Jody Lehman made a fine save.
The final period continued at a frenetic pace, with the villain of the last game scoring a goal on the rebound to add to his earlier scrap, Brett Clouthier slotting home after a good pad save from Minard.
The moment of the match however came at 58.06 of the 3rd period. Mark Dutiaume stealing the puck in his defensive end, skating down the left wing before combining with Jason Ruff and Curtis Huppe in a tic tac toe move that pulled Lehman out of position to give Huppe the goal and restore the 2 goal advantage before George Awada sealed the win with a great empty net goal firing the puck the full length of the ice.
The Giants travel to Hull tomorrow (Sunday 3rd) now, hoping to continue in the same vein and add to the win column.
Live Scores
Next Game
Next SeasonLast Game
- Sat 07 Apr
- vs Devils, OTL 4-3
- Giants Goals: Rebek, Clarke, Hoffman
- Devils Goals: Matzka, Dobben, Piggot
League Standings
| P | TEAM | GP | W(OT) | L(OT) | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Giants | 54 | 46(0) | 5(3) | 95 |
| 2 | Steelers | 54 | 41(0) | 11(2) | 84 |
| 3 | Panthers | 54 | 38(0) | 12(4) | 80 |
| 4 | Devils | 54 | 32(0) | 12(10) | 74 |
| 5 | Blaze | 54 | 32(0) | 20(2) | 66 |
| 6 | Clan | 54 | 31(0) | 19(4) | 66 |
| 7 | Stingrays | 54 | 16(0) | 34(4) | 36 |
| 8 | Stars | 54 | 13(0) | 35(6) | 32 |
| 9 | Capitals | 54 | 13(0) | 37(4) | 30 |
| 10 | Flyers | 54 | 8(0) | 40(6) | 22 |
Giants' Stat Leaders
| Points | Robert Dowd | 78 |
|---|---|---|
| Goals | Robert Dowd | 40 |
| Assists | Craig Peacock | 49 |
| PIM | Adam Keefe | 247 |