MINI MATCH PREVIEW

Last weekend saw the Knights play 3 in 3, and come away with a spot in the National Cup Final after beating the Sheffield Steeldogs on Friday night, followed a 4-point weekend to keep the top spot in the league standings!

A quick blip in form against the Peterborough Phantoms was somewhat reduced last weekend, when we beat Saturday night’s opponents, the second place MK Lightning. Last Saturday saw the Knights come back in the final 2 minutes, and #11 Matt Haywood came up huge with the game-winning goal in overtime – for his hat-trick!

Saturday night’s OT win was accompanied by a storming victory over the Telford Tigers in our trip to Shropshire, with us putting 8 goals past the back to back league champions.

Milton Keynes only played 2 games last weekend, so will come to Leeds slightly fresher, but they do have the journey up to consider, and of their 2 games last weekend they lost both. MK faced the Peterbourgh Phantoms on Friday night, and they were narrowly beat out to a place in the National Cup Final, although it does mean they’ll play less total games, and every little helps as the league title race heats up.

The Lightning will no doubt be on the hunt to get back to winning ways, with a win for them meaning they’ll be level with us on points, but a win for the Leeds Knights will increase the gap to 4 points (3 if in overtime) with 2 games still in hand for the Knights.

ONES TO WATCH

The Ones to Watch for the MK Lightning is ex-NHLer, #28 Tim Wallace. Tim Wallace has played in some of the biggest leagues in the world, with more than 100 games in ‘The Show’, the SHL and almost 400 games in the AHL.

Despite not having the greatest point totals in some of the bigger leagues, Tim Wallace is a massive asset to the Lightning, both on and off the ice, as he’s their player head coach, logging a 1.45 points per game during his time at this level and even scoring the game-winning goal in our first visit to the Thunderdome earlier this season.

Not only is Wallace a proven point scorer at this level, with an eye for goal and a wicked shot, he’s a big strong body and he can go all night, despite being 38 years of age.

The Morley Glass Leeds Knights ones to watch this week is… #27 Cole Shudra

Cole was our second highest point scorer through January, just behind captain Kieran Brown and he also sits second on the season in points scored for the Knights, after logging an impressive 34 goals and 39 assists in just 36 games!

Last season Cole had 22 goals and 21 assists, in 33 games, but this year he has come into a world of his own, and across a similar amount of games, he has 30 more points in 22-23.

Not only does #27 consistently manage to put the puck in the net and points on the board, he scores key goals at key times, and he’ll be looking to do the same on Saturday night, against a team he once played 46 games for.

POST-GAME PLAYER SIGNINGS:

Post-Game Player signings return this week, with it being your first chance to get your merchandise signed by #7 Tom Barry and #91 Jake Witkowski! You can meet 2 of our newest signings in the Planet Ice bar after Saturday night’s game.

MATCH NIGHT COMPETITIONS:

Shirt Off the Back –  For just £2 you could win your favourite player’s game worn jersey!

50-50 Raffle – Feeling lucky? On Saturday night you could be going home with a massive cash prize with our 50/50 raffle! We are once again guaranteeing a £1000 prize for the winner of our 50:50! The winner of this competition receives exactly half of the proceeds, and at just £1 a ticket why not try your luck?

Chuck-A-Puck – If a game of chance isn’t up your alley, buy a chuck-a-puck for just £1 and if you’re the closest puck to Leo’s feet then you will win a family ticket for 4 to a game of your choice! Learn more about match night competitions.