Giants Hit Back From Behind To Send League Leaders Devils Crashing

Cardiff Devils 2, Belfast Giants 3

after sudden death overtime

Cardiff Devils suffered a major blow to their Elite League title hopes when they went down against Belfast Giants in front of a capacity attendance at Ice Arena Wales.

More than 3,000 spectators roared Cardiff on, but they were beaten after sudden death overtime.

League leaders Devils were without suspended Patrick Bordeleau, but they were twice ahead thanks to goals from Matthew Myers and Patrick Asselin.

Next weekend Devils play Coventry Blaze away on Saturday (7pm) and then take on Sheffield Steelers at Ice Arena Wales the following evening (6pm).

Ticket information is available from the club’s official website or via the hotline on 0800 0842 666.

First period

Cardiff Devils issued a clear and immediate warning to Belfast Giants at Ice Arena Wales.

Big defenceman Mark Louis challenged Belfast’s Matt Nickerson to a fight straight after the face-off and the two heavyweights went at it.

Louis landed an early blow and just edged the confrontation.

There was no doubt Devils wanted to make sure Giants were aware they would stand up for themselves even though enforcer Patrick Bordeleau missed the game because of a one-match suspension.

Just in case Nickerson or Adam Keefe had thoughts of trying to intimidate Devils, Louis laid down a clear marker.

There was another confrontation on 15-53 when Belfast’s John Rutherford took on Andrew Hotham. That was a mismatch, but Rutherford insisted and both men were given five-minute penalties.

The only goal of the first period came when Cardiff’s David Brine returned to the bench and Myers took over. The Welsh forward had only just reached the blue line when Scott Hotham slipped the puck back to him.

Myers was out wide, just inside the blue line, when he smashed in a shot.

Goalie Jackson Whistle, the son of former Devils coach Dave, looked shocked as the puck hit the roof of the net behind him and home fans started celebrating wildly.

End of first period: Devils 1, Giants 0

Second period

Asselin fired into the net at the far post to make it 2-0 after 25-20, with Joey Martin and Guillaume Doucet adding assists.

Giants pulled one back on the powerplay when Chris Higgins netted (27-10) and gave his team new hope.

It was a physical, fiercely contested clash full of big hits and teams worked to stamp their authority on the match.

Home fans roared their approval when defenceman Gleason Fournier left a Giants man on the ice, while Louis ignored Adam Keefe’s offer to drop the gloves.

Louis had made his point earlier by taking on Nickerson and wasn’t going to be lured into another clash without good reason.

End of second: Devils 2, Giants 1.

Third period

Jonathan Boxhill levelled the scores after 43-01 and at 2-2 it was clear Devils were struggling to consistently find their best form.

Andrew Hotham was outstanding throughout, while Joey Haddad was man of the match.

Head coach Andrew Lord, though, admitted afterwards there had been ‘passengers’ in this match.

End of third: Devils 2, Giants 2.

Sudden death overtime (3v3)

Chris Higgins served up the match winner two minutes 34 seconds into overtime.

Goalie Whistle, Belfast’s man of the match, produced a smart save and Giants swept down the ice to score the winner.

Defeat was a massive blow for Devils, but they do earn a point because the scores were level after regulation time, while Belfast earn the extra point thanks to their overtime winner.

End of overtime: Devils 2, Giants 3.

Match stats:

Scorers, Devils: Matthew Myers 1+0, Patrick Asselin 1+0, Scott Hotham 0+1, Joey Martin 0+1, Guillaume Doucet 0+1.

Giants: Blair Riley 1+0, Chris Higgins 1+1, Jonathan Boxhill 1+0, Michael Forney 0+1, Matt Towe 0+1, Michael Quesnele 0+1.

Period scores (Devils first) 1-0; 1-1 (2-1); 0-1 (2-2); 0-1 (2-3).

Shots on goal: Devils (on Whistle) 9+8+9+1=27; Giants (on Bowns) 12+5+7+2=26.

Powerplays: Devils 0/3; Giants 1/2.

Penalties in minutes: Devils 12+4+0+0=16; Giants 12+6+0+0=18

Referee: Stefan Hogarth.

Attendance: 3,088.