Blaze and Panthers with chance to move up

Photo: Scott Wiggins

The Coventry Blaze face the Nottingham Panthers on Saturday night at the Motorpoint Arena with each team having a big chance to climb the standings.

Coventry, who have won two of their last three, can go into joint-first with two points tonight, and in Shane Owen have the leading goalie of the 2021 Elite Series so far (92.22% shots saved).

The Panthers, following their win over Sheffield on Friday, are on a two-game win streak and could end the night in second if they can get a win in this fixture. Jackson Whistle and Ben Bowns are the second and third-best goalies in the tournament to date.

Blaze forward Tristan Keck has 12 points from seven games (7+5), and with Mike Hammond on 3+8 the Blaze have two of the competition's top four point scorers overall. Christophe Boivin leads the Panthers on 5+5, and is fifth in the series.

When it comes to special teams, Coventry continue to dominate the series on both the powerplay and penalty kill with 30.43% and 81.48% efficiency respectively. The Panthers at 17.39% and 80.00% are fourth and joint-second in those categories.

Team news
Tim Wallace has a choice to make in net as both Bowns and Whistle have backstopped the team to ins this week. Craig Garrigan and Bobby Chamberlain were healthy scratches against the Steelers, but could add some fresh legs if Wallace wants to add them.

Shane Owen has played four games in ten days for the Blaze which may be a consideration for Danny Stewart tonight. Jordan Hedley has one start so far in the series. Nick Jermain has been stretching after missing the midweek win over Manchester.