NEWS CHANNEL
MK Lightning are gearing up for a huge match-up with Guildford Flames this Saturday – and know that a victory will see them go top of the league.
There were back-to-back wins for Nick Poole’s side this weekend after another excellent two days, and now the goal is to rise to the summit of the English Premier League table.
Lightning briefly tasted the feeling of leading the way earlier in the season but they then fell away after a run of inconsistent results.
Guildford currently sit on top but with the city skaters breathing down their necks in second, it’s all to play for in the big clash at Planet Ice.
If Lightning need any inspiration for the game then they only need to look back to New Year’s Day when the Flames were thrashed 6-2 on their own ice thanks to a dominant MK performance.
Netminder Alex Mettam, currently the best performing stopper in the league, is keen for a repeat of the performance which started 2012 with a bang.
He said:“We had a great game in their barn on New Year’s Day, everyone played really well and we want a repeat of that this Saturday.
“On New Year’s Day we made the most of our chances to score, got a big goal on the powerplay, we were smart defensively clearing our zone, and we were well-disciplined, not taking too many penalties.”
Guildford are without a win in 2012 having lost 6-4 to Swindon on Saturday and they were also well beaten by Basingstoke Bison on New Year’s Eve, but Mettam is still expecting a tough encounter.
“Playing Guildford is never easy, they have a lot of firepower, which is why they’ve been at the top of the table for so long this season,” he said.
“And after losing three games on the bounce they’ll be determined to put things right.”
This weekend started superbly for Lightning with a huge 7-2 home victory over Telford Tigers, a remarkable scoreline after the visitors had claimed a shock 2-0 lead within five first period minutes.
Leigh Jamieson kick-started the recovery after 31 minutes and the scores were quickly level with player coach Poole finding the target.
Lightning found themselves on a powerplay when Ryan Selwood sat out a penalty for holding an opponent’s stick, and with six seconds of the advantage left, Lukas Zatopek and Adam Carr set up Poole for a vital third.
The scoring was far from finished and Juraj Graick found the target a minute into the final period, before a superb strike from Carr stretched the lead.
A now demoralised Telford conceded two more in the final stages as a relentless Lightning surged in on goal – Jamieson bagged a second and Blaz Emersic completed the rout with only 38 seconds on the clock.
OnSunday the win was followed up with an impressive 5-3 victory away at Bracknell Bees, with three late goals in the final period from Emersic, Carr and Jamieson proving crucial after the home side had been 3-2 ahead.
Lightning were also behind at 1-0 and 2-1 so showed great spirit to battle back on more than one occasion in the entertaining contest.
• MKL are hoping for a full house for the Guildford clash and are encouraging supporters to bring a friend to the Planet Ice clash.
